The Sun, the Moon and the Stars
by SYuuri
Summary: It all started when Tommy met Kimberly. TK. Plz read and review.:Chapter 18:
1. Everything needs a beginning

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer : No, not mine. Just own everything that wasn't Power Rangers related. **

**: Hi everyone! Yes, it's me, _again_. Please don't get tired of me. ;D Once again, I want to thank you for everyone who has read my other fics. This is the new Tommy and Kimberly story. Not a reunion fic, though I have something about it in mind. Perhaps after this finish… who knows? Okay, enough said. Here if the first chapter and I really hope you like this one. Enjoy!**

**: Just like _You and I Both_, in this story, there's no such thing as Power Rangers. They're just amazing teenagers with no special powers. **

* * *

**Chapter one: Everything needs a beginning**

Groaning, Kimberly leaned down and grabbed her gym bag. Everything was a mess. It began since the very first second she stepped inside the high school. Bulk, as always, couldn't be more immature than he already had, fortuitously pushed her until her head hit the locker nearby. It would bruise tomorrow, right on her forehead.

And then came the English class. She got into a pretty heated argument with Mr. Frank that almost resulted her to being kick out of the class. Hell, that man gave her a D for her latest essay. That's just totally absurd. A _D_. She never got a _D_ before. Her mom would get an instant heart attack if she found out.

Like her day hadn't been sucky enough, her routine that she thought would at least make this day a little better, had ended up equally sucks as the others thing that had happened. Her body refused to cooperate and she almost broke her neck in those nasty falls. She was tired, hungry and wanting to release all the tension in her body by kicking or punching everyone within an arm reach. Kim felt like crap.

" Hey, you don't look so good," Trini offered an encouraging smile when the worn-out gymnast pulled a chair and sat lazily. Kim rested her chin on her hands and closed her eyes.

" I feel like hell right now, thank you," Kim mumbled, her hand moving to her neck and massage it, trying to rub out the soreness. " I just want to go home, take a nice long bath and go to sleep for a thousand years or so,"

Trini smiled and got back to her homework. " You can do that as soon as you go home,"

" Except that I haven't touched that thirty five mathmatics problems yet and I most likely will be up to do that until three in the morning," Kim continued without opening her eyes. She felt like she could fall asleep right here, right now, even with all the sounds. " do you think Billy would do it for me, perhaps?"

" If he sees you right now, I think he might," Trini said half jokingly. Honestly, Kim did look terrible. It's just unlike her, to appear this lifeless. " why don't you go home? You have had enough for a day,"

Kim nodded and got to her feet, sipping her last strawberry smoothie. Her drowsy chocolate eyes looked down at Trini. " Thanks, I think I'll see you tomorrow?"

" Cool,"

When the first California air hit her face, she felt like she got a renewed strength. Rubbing her hands together, she pulled herself together. There's just one day left and yeah, weekend! Maybe she'd kill the time by working on her tan. It had been a while since she went to the beach. As for tomorrow, whatever going to happen, happen. Hopefully, today's series of misfortunes wouldn't repeat again.

Kim was walking to the bus stop when she saw a kid get cornered by a man. The little boy couldn't be older than eight and he looked terrified. She didn't say that she blamed him though. The man did look scary. He's bald and with the thick mustache and beard, he reminded her of the drug dealer in the Hollywood's production action movies that Zack loved so much.

Kim smirked. This was just what she'd ordered. What could an eight year old do to piss him off, she had no idea. But right now, she was like a nearly erupted volcano and the scene before her eyes triggered it even more. Looking around to find noone, Kim took a deep breath before crossing the street.

" Hey, stop it. You scare him," she stated, finding courage from out of nowhere, The wonder woman was in action right now. Stopping the bad guys was her job.

The bald man turned around and Kim shrinked a little bit on her place. He didn't look _that_ big when she saw them across the road. He had a scar on his right cheek and Kim could see the dragon tattoo on his chest since he kept his shirt unbuttoned. Was it supposed to look sexy because that man was just far from it.

" None of your problem, S_horty_,"

Oh no. He did not say it just now. He's dead. So dead. Every person that had enough nerve to tease her about her lack of height was dead meat. " Well, since I am here, I guess this is my problem," she amazed herself by the certainty in her voice. Her knees almost didn't hold and her palms were slightly wet. He could knock her out with one blow. She might be a great gymnast, but not a fighter. Zack had taught her a couple of stances but well, he himself was a dancer alright. " back off,"

Kim felt someone pulled her shirt and she looked down. It seemed that in the mean time, the boy had managed to slip away and go to hide behind her. The boy clutched at her shirt tightly.

" You don't want me to hurt you, Missy," the guy said menacingly, taking a step forward. " but if you don't bring your pretty face out of here, that could be arranged,"

" Run," Kim hissed at the boy, impatiently pushing him. " come on!"

" But-,"

" No but. Go!"

" Hey!" The man raised his hand, swearing loudly. Kim saw as the little boy go behind a corner. Kim blocked him before he could start running after the boy. Her eyes widened when he almost stumbled forward. His weight could kill her, she was sure of that. It was only a beginning. His steely blue eyes narrowed and in one swift move, he slipped his hand inside his jeans pocket and pulled out a switch blade. " you little bitch,"

" You don't want to do that," she heard herself saying. Great. What the hell she got herself into right now?

" Oh yeah? Wanna bet? Wanna see what can I do with this?" the man lifted the knife higher and before he could say anything, Kim did the only thing in her mind. _Run!_

Kim run as fast as her legs could take her. She didn't even pay attention to the direction she was taking. Behind her, she could hear the man chasing her and shouting, saying all the words that were not appropriate to say in front of your mother. Thank God, she was a pretty good runner and the guy had a tough time to catch her. _If_ he could catch her. Which she thought he couldn't. Maybe later, after he lost about 200 pounds of his weight.

Oh boy. She's supposed to lay on her bed right now, having a hot chocolate in her hands, NOT running like crazy and having a pyscho right on her tail. But well, she couldn't just let that man hassle the kid. He should be ashamed, bullying an eight year old was not-,

BIMMMMMMMMM…..

The loud honk surprised her and Kim turned her head. She didn't realize that she had crossed the street without looking. Now a black jeep was driving to her direction. She tripped and fell forward, closing her eyes tightly, knowing that her death was near. Tomorrow she would make the headline. She didn't even get to say goodbye to her mother, Trini, Billy, Zack…

" Are you okay?"

…and Ernie too. There're so many people th-… _Wait_. She's not dead. Kim slowly opened her eyes and saw that she was still on her knees, her hands pressed against the road. Glancing to her left, she found the jeep had stopped about one meter from her face. That was really, really, really close.

" You okay?"

This time, she felt a hand touching her shoulder and she looked up. There's a guy. A guy from school, from her Geometry class. Tommy Oliver. Ha! It's a good thing that he succedeed in stopping the car at the last second, if not all the girls in school would probably faint when they heard about their dream guy almost hit her.

Still reeling from the shock, Kim peered over her shoulder and saw the guy standing at the corner, leaning against the wall to catch his breath. His lips formed a sickening smile and his eyes were full of satisfaction, like a tiger eyeing its prey. NO! That guy! She almost forgot about him. Still in all panic mode, Kim tried to stand up but cringed. It seemed that she had sprained her ankle. Double damn.

Running out of fresh ideas, Kim closed her eyes and leaned against Tommy, pretending to be half conscious. She put her hand on her chest and breathed heavily. " I, I can't breathe,"

" What? Are you sure?"

That line nearly cracked her laughing but she managed to hold them back. She nodded. " Yes," she nearly gasped when all of a sudden, she was swept off the ground. Her mouth hung open when he carried her to the jeep. Before Kim could find her voice, he had seated her on the passenger seat, walking around and jumped in.

" We'd better get you to the hospital," he said and started the engine.

Kim didn't answer. She craned her neck and saw the dragon-guy was running towards the jeep, panting heavily. The switch blade was still in his grasp. She released a breath of relief when they started driving away. Wow, what a day.

" Don't think you'll get away from this!" the guy still had enough energy to yell at her and Kim chuckled, leaning her head back against the seat. She patted her chest, her heart was still beating like a drum.

" What that was all about?" Tommy asked, startled her. Oh yeah. She forgot that she should be having a breathing difficulty. " who's that man?"

Kim shrugged. " Just a guy. He's harrassing a little kid and then got like he had been possessed like that," she didn't know Tommy too well, so she didn't say anything else. Tommy, as always, kept silence. Well, that was his trademark alright. Always talking when it's needed. Many girls would willingly die to sit in Tommy's jeep like she did right now.

Almost all her girlfriends had gushed about how cool he was, how calm and how hot he was at least once. Even Trini complimented him for being such a great martial artist. As for Kim, she didn't know him that well to say something. But yes, he was indeed a good looking guy, and it seemed that he was not aware of that fact. That was something these days.

" Thanks. You saved my life," Kim said breathlessly.

" You almost got yourself killed back then," he scolded her softly. His face indicated nothing but she could sense the relief in his voice. He kept his eyes on the road. " you should be more careful next time,"

" I will," when she didn't have a lunatic chasing her like crazy, that is. Kim gnawed her lips, wondering if Tommy would actually take her to the hospital like he said he would. "look, I'm alright. You can put me down here,"

He turned her head and smiled lightly. " So you can breathe right now?"

If she didn't owe him, she would smack him good for that comment. And of course, she couldn't just smack him. They're not even friends. There're only probably about two hundred words that had ever been said between them. " Yes. Now, you can pull over and-,"

" So I saved your life, right?" Tommy said, stopping the jeep when the traffic light changed red. He looked at her and Kim suddenly felt flustered. " so I take it that you can do something to repay me…, uhm..," he stopped and looked a bit bashful. Kim generously filled in for him.

" Kimberly," did this guy even realize that they were together in geometry? Ah, and History too. Maybe he was too cool to notice. " you were saying?"

Tommy surprised the hell out of her when he reached out his hand and grasped hers tightly. Kim swallowed hard.

" Kimberly, will you be my girlfriend?"

* * *

**: First chapter, first cliffhanger. If you think it's a little bit too fast, let me tell you something. This was only the beginning. ; ) So what do you think? Do you like it? Well, I really hope that you enjoy reading this one. Thank you for reading and please don't forget to leave your reviews. NO FLAME! **

**- Yuuri : )**


	2. Hi, what is your name?

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer: Not mine, I just own characters or places that are not Power Rangers related.**

**: Hello! Thank you for everyone who had reviewed. Life had not been as demanding as the past few weeks, so this is the next chapter. Hope you like it. Enjoy! **

* * *

**Chapter two: Hi, what is your name?**

" _Kimberly, will you be my girlfriend?" _

For Kim, it felt like the guy sitting in front of her talking in a completely different languange. She barely registered the meaning behind those words when he said it once again. Now it started to soak into her brain, maybe just a little but she understood his words this time.

_He_ wanted _her_ to be his _girlfriend_.

Perhaps the shock for having thinking that he had hit her succeeded in making him losing his mind. Kim gulped like a fish out of the water. " W-what?"

Tommy didn't even know _her_ name. This must've meant that there's a good number percent that he wasn't even aware of her existence at all. Why would a guy who doesn't know the girl's name wanted to have her as his girlfriend? What's wrong with the world today?

Tommy sighed and after an irritated loud honk from the car behind, he broke their gazes and leaned back to his place. She was surprised. That's an understatement. She might think that he was crazy, which he thought that he might be.

" _Jason Lee Scott," Alex said. Despite the broke up two days ago, the wide grin he displayed showed nothing of it. This was life, things happened and everyone eventually had to move on. That's his motto in his life although Tommy just couldn't understand how he can get over it so fast. Alex and Leslie had been a couple for almost a year. " now you and Emily are officially the longest couple between us. I mean, even with her being three thousand miles from you not preventing you two to get all mushy and all. Right, Tommy?" _

_Tommy shrugged. " I guess so, yeah," _

_Alex turned the volume of his stereo up and walked back to the chair he had deserted. Jason sat in front of the computer while Tommy prefered to sit on the floor. It was ten o'clock at night and the assessment was just half done. It's gonna be a long night. " Okay, and how about you, Tommy? Any girl you should tell us?" _

_The long haired boy didn't lift his head from the reference book lying on his lap. Please don't tell him they would have the conversation again. Like they didn't have another thing to do. " No and even though there is, you wouldn't know about it,"_

_Jason laughed and Alex put his hand over his chest, putting a fake hurt expression on his face. " Ouch! That hurts,"_

" _It supposed to," Tommy remarked. _

" _Then it's a good thing that Alex was not one of your fans," Jason turned in his chair and propped his legs to rest on Alex's bed. " those girls just can't take sarcasm, don't you think?" _

" _Can we get back to work? I don't want to spend the night in this small room. One single bed for the three of us is not very comforting," the aggravation in Tommy's voice amused the other boys even more. _

" _What? You don't want to have a threesome with us," Alex said innocently and had to duck down before the book Tommy throwing hit his head. He laughed. " easy, Oliver. Looks like someone forgot to take his medicine tonight,"_

_Jason crossed his hands in front of his chest and frowned. " What is it with you and girls, Tommy? No offense, but with all those girls drooling over you, you can just easily pick one and bam, single no more. Just look at me and Em, we do look very happy, right? Tommy bro, you have to break free from that tough shell of yours and let them in," _

" _Yeah, open your heart for love. That's what Jason's trying to say. You're too shy around them, as far as I've observed," Alex nodded and took off his glasses, revealing the bottomless green eyes behind. Five of seven girls he had dated said all the same. The eyes were 'IT'. Girls just could lose themselves in them. His chiseled jaws and his football captain status were another matter. _

" _What is this? Are you all of a sudden turned into a shrink?" Tommy asked. " do I even have to pay for this night session?" why couldn't they just accept the fact that he was not interested in girls? He had never had a girlfriend because he didn't feel like it. Or hadn't found the right person perhaps was the more perfect reason. Being single was fun. _

" _Are you gay?" Out of the blue, Alex blurted out and Jason choke on his drink. " because if you are, it's cool. You can tell us anything you know,"_

_Tommy stifled his groan. Testing his patience was their goal and he certaintly didn't want them to succeed. " Whatever float your boat, my friend,"_

_Jason, who had stopped laughing, rose to his feet and towering over Tommy. He grinned at Alex for a while and gave Tommy his full attention. " Why don't we make a deal," _

" _I have the feeling that whatever going out from your mouth would bring hell right in front of my face," Tommy commented dryly. " and watching that smirk just clinched my point," _

" _What deal?" Alex queried. _

_Jason cleared his throat and did the perfect imitation of their English teacher. " Mr. Oliver, you gotta get yourself a girlfriend. In a week. I don't care how, you just must. A week. Did you hear me? A girlfriend in a week," _

_Alex clapped his hands and shouted, " Bravo," over and over again. _

_Tommy had to laugh at his friend's silly thought. What would he be if he complied? Jason was just surely unbelievable. He retorted, " Did you think before talking because that's just a total insane idea you have. What made it crazier is that you actually thought I would do it. Hah!" _

_Alex scratched his chin, his shoulder slumped slightly. " Tommy got a point here. It's a shame," _

_However, Jason did not look bothered at the slightest. In fact, he was grinning from ear to ear. " Oh yeah, I'm pretty sure that he would. If not, maybe about two or three days ahead, there will be a very pissed Mrs. Helen Meyer," he said that slowly, giving time to let the words sipping into Tommy's brain. _

" _You wouldn't," Tommy narrowed his eyes. _

" _Of course he would," Alex chimed in. " if not, maybe I would," he gave Jason a highfive. _

_Two months ago, Tommy, Jason and Alex were the first three people to attend Mrs. Meyer's class. Ignoring the rules, Jason brought the basketball with him. Trying to spend the time, he and Tommy played a mini basketball game in the not so big classroom. Tommy misjudged his shoot and the ball crushed the statue sitting proudly on Mrs. Meyer's desk, splitting it into two pieces. _

_The problem was, it was not just some statues. Although almost all the students, especially Tommy, couldn't see the speciality of the statue, it was Mrs. Meyer's baby. It had no shape and it was just… ugly. It reminded of his handiwork when he was four. His teacher claimed it was a gift from Monseur Something, Tommy couldn't recall his name, from Belgium. _

_Thankfully, they all managed to escape before anybody started coming into the class. They laughed about it for a whole ten minutes when they had reached the hall, away from the crime scene. _

'_Congratulations, Tommy. Finally we don't have to see that hideous work of arts anymore,' Alex said, laughing between his words. _

_And man… When Mrs. Meyer found out that her valuable statue was damaged… well, let's say that she would make a perfect cast as a heart broken widow. She was furious, shocked, upset and angry at once. That's not very pretty images. She made an ultimatum. If one day she found out who the brat was, she would make the person pay for the rest of his life. Hell has no fury like a woman scorned._

_Tommy was no coward, but yes, he did believe that she would make him pay for the rest of his life. She was like a lucifer's daughter- in- law, that if he had one. _

_Obviously, two months went by and the secret never came out. _

_It was about to change if he didn't do what Jason had told him to do. Shit. _

" _That's just not fair," Tommy said. " Threatening your friend is not a very pleasant thing to do,"_

_Jason raised an eyebrow. " Don't use that word. I'm just trying to help you, Bro. A week, Tommy. A week,"_

That pep talk took place six days ago and as expected, Tommy was clueless. He couldn't just choose a girl and ask her to be his girlfriend. Choosing a girfriend was different from picking clothes. It involved something called feelings. But he wouldn't deny that one day he wished that he can have what his parents had. Benjamin and Patty Oliver had been married for almost thirty years and they loved each other more by the day.

David was now residing in San Fransisco with his beautiful wife and his adorable one year old daughter, Michelle. As sappy as this sounded, Tommy wanted to have little Tommies running all over the house one day. But that was for the future so there's no need to sweat over it right now. Tomorrow. How about tomorrow? Asking a girl to be his girlfriend wouldn't be right. That would be like he was using her.

' _It's not like they would actually mind,' _was Alex's casual reply when he voiced that concern.

Some friends he had here.

Then there's this girl next to him. That had been a pretty close call. If he stepped on the brake two seconds late, everything would be over. She probably would fly about three meters forwards before landing flat on the road, bleeding furiously.

Tommy stole a quick glance to his right. The brunette was still in awe by his sudden question. He had seen her a few times. She went to the Angel Grove High as well. They were together in Geometry and History, if he recalled rightly. About her name… it's not that he didn't notice before but they really were not friends and add that to the patented Oliver memory…

It just came out. Asking her to be his girlfriend. He said it at the rush of emotions and well, he couldn't just take it back.

" Are you trying to make fun of me?" her next sentence snapped him out of his trains of thoughts. "because I really think that you are,"

" No! Look. Maybe I said it wrong, what I mean is…," Tommy smiled coyly at her, his hands grasping the steerwheel tighter. Yeah, this was probably why he had never had a girlfriend before. Talking about self-esteem. It might sound silly, but girls made him nervous. "I didn't actually ask you to be my girlfriend, but-,"

" Now you're playing with me," she said, pressing her back against her seat. She took a deep breath and started to relax.

" If that how this sounded to you, then I'm sorry," he apologized. They didn't have to go to the hospital so he's just driving without exact direction. " I wasn't asking you to be my girlfriend. Pretending to be one is the right term to say it,"

" Excuse me? _Pretending_ to be your girlfriend?" she asked again, wanting to make sure her ears not playing tricks with her.

" You know what? Forget it. I must have been possessed for a while," Tommy stammered. " I'll take you home, uhm…,"

Her honey colored eyes softened a bit at his nerveousness. It was as clear as the day. " Kimberly. And you wanted me to pretend to be your girlfriend," she couldn't help but teasing him.

" Right, Kimberly. I'm sorry," he said rather embarrassedly.

" But why do you need a fake-girlfriend?" she threw the question at his face. " I'm sorry, but I'm just curious,"

He was quiet for a moment but then he found himself telling her about the silly deal he had made with Jason and Alex. Tommy couldn't believe this. He was telling someone he barely knew that he was the guilty for driving Mrs. Meyer crazy back then. When the story was finished, he could literaly feel her eyes on him. " Yeah… but it's alright. They really need to grow up. Don't think about it. Just, don't tell anyone about the statue incident, K'?"

" Will you be alright? They won't tell on you like Jason'd said, right?" Kim asked.

" I'm sure they won't," Tommy nodded. At least he hoped so. Jason wouldn't be that cruel. Although Tommy definitely could picture Alex doing just that.

" You must be so desperate enough until you asked me. I'm practically a stranger to you," Kim said softly. " do you realize that you actually have an unofficial fans club at school right? With your face on the banner?" she laughed and shook her head. " many girls would drop on their knees to be your girlfriend,"

Tommy chuckled and turned his head to look at her. " For real? There's a banner with my face on it? Am I supposed to be thrilled or freak out?"

" Um… my suggestion? Taking a new photo because the picture of yours they have is just-," Kim stopped at when his expression changed. She beamed. " I'm just pulling your legs. I'm sure you would know if such a banner is exist,"

It was when they both realized that he had driven back to the Youth Center. Tommy stopped the jeep and turned his head. " Well, here we are. You don't see your friend around, do you?"

What friend? Oh… Kim's eyes swiftly swept over the area and she exhaled hard when finding no sign of the dragon-guy. She just hoped that the little boy was alright. She unbuckled the seatbelt. " Nope. Once again, thanks a lot and sorry for crossing the street likes that. I must have surprised you,"

Tommy nodded, his mouth was half opened when his eyes spotted Alex walking out of the Youth Center. It was just about time until he saw him and Kim together. Then he wouldn't stop talking for the rest of the week.

Kim was still sitting on the passenger seat and gave him a smile. He returned it somewhat awkwardly. She jumped down but well, it was far too late. At the time her feet touched the ground, Alex Brennan shouting from his place.

" Hey Tommy!" in a couple of long strides, there he was, standing before Kim. She looked so small to be standing beside Alex. He was indeed a tall guy, taller than Tommy and Jason in fact. " and hey to you to… um.. I think I know you. You're going to Angel Grove High too, right? You are in my History class. Kimberly Hart?"

Meanwhile, Tommy had killed the engine and hop down, making his way to his nosy friend.

Kim had to smile at Alex's words. He too couldn't be considered as her friend but at least he knew she was alive _and_ her name. She glanced up to see Tommy had stood beside her, frowning at Alex.

" Alex, what's up?"

His green eyes moved from Kim to Tommy, his mouth smiling so wide that Kim thought it must be hurt for smiling that wide.

" So you have found a girl finally! We should throw a big party," his enthusiasm tickled Kim but she stopped smiling when she saw Tommy's annoyed expression. " since when, huh?" Alex poked Tommy's shoulder. " Did Jason know about this already?"

Tommy decided the faster he cleared things up, the better. He shoved Alex's hand off his shoulder and stated, " No, we're-,"

Alex cut him mid sentence, " I'm so proud of you, Tommy. My baby has finally grown up," to add to Tommy's embarrassment, he turned to Kim and said, " you know what? He's so bad. He never had a girlfriend before so please, bear with him. I think he's an adequate kisser but who knows? The only woman he ever kissed was probably her mother," Alex nudged Tommy again, making Kim giggle. She was surprised with his saying but he was talking so fast that she couldn't stop him and correct him. And Tommy's expression was priceless. Poor thing. " He may look handsome, but he has nothing to compare with me,"

Tommy couldn't believe that Alex actually said all those things to Kimberly. He knew he shouldn't react but he just couldn't help himself. Of course, Alex, being a player for almost the rest of his life, knew more about girls than he was and would ever be. Even he's still checking out another girl when he was with Leslie.

Sending his rationality to the Noth Pole, Tommy lifted his arm and pulled Kim closer to him until they were body pressed. Her body was unyielding and her head snapped up to look at him. He only tightened his grip.

" Yes, thank you, Alex. You're far too kind, but if you don't mind, please excuse us for a moment," Tommy pulled Kim's hand and began to walk when Alex stopped him, still grinning like a chesire cat.

" No, no. Please, don't mind my presence. I have to head back anyway," he hit Tommy's chest good-naturedly and smiled at Kim before walking to his car, leaving Tommy and Kimberly standing hand in hand at the parking lot.

The silence only broke when suddenly Kim was laughing. Everything was so ridiculous that she couldn't believe this was happening to her. Today was a very unusual day. Tommy looked down at her with a puppy dog look on his face that made Kim want to laugh even more. Somehow she managed to cool down and her gaze moved to their joined hands. Noticing that he still clinging at her, Tommy quickly released Kim's hand.

" I'm so sorry," he said in a rush.

" What that was all about?"

Tommy rubbed the back of his neck, thinking for an answer. " I, I don't know. I'm sorry. It's just-,"

" You saved your manly man pride," Kim continued for him. " I understand. I felt that whatever you did back then had nothing to do with the deal you made with Jason,"

Tommy looked down at her smiling face, losing for words. Today, he had been talking with this one girl more than he had been for the last three years or so with all the girls from school being summed up. An accomplishment?

" So what do we do now. Alex definitely thinks that we are together while we're not,"

" I'll explain everything to him. Don't worry," Tommy hastened to assure her. He felt like kicking himself for doing such thing. How could he lose control like that? _Maturity is the keyword, Tommy. Where's yours?_

Kim chewed her lips, confused if she really would say what she had in mind to Tommy. Somehow, her demeanor didn't go unnotice by Tommy and he quirked an eyebrow. " What is it?"

" Well, I do owe you for saving me back then and now that this already happened, one day wouldn't hurt," Kim shrugged, glancing away modestly. What the hell she was offering? Oh yes, this day was certainly cursed.

" Do you realize what you said?"

Kim nodded shyly. " Don't get me wrong. I'm just trying to help you, that if you want to,"

Tommy sighed. " Well…,"

" And of course, if you don't mind having me as your 'girlfriend'," Kim made a sign with her fingers at the word girlfriend. " you might ruin your reputation by dating me,"

He snorted. " Oh yeah and what reputation do I posses?"

" You know, all those girls… They would pass out into coma if they knew we're going out, even only for one day," Kim frowned, watching his face closely. This guy was not that dense, was he?

" I'll send them flowers," was his reply and Kim bursted out laughing. She wiggled her finger in front of his face.

" That was so mean, Mr. Oliver. Especially coming from you,"

" So you don't mind," he asked. " about this? I'm sorry for dragging you into this mess but-,"

" No, it's my fault. If I didn't cross the street so abruptly like that, maybe until this very second, you still don't know my name," Kim teased and he rolled his eyes. " you know what I mean,"

" And after tomorrow, we'll break up,"

Kim nodded. " A mutual decision. Jason didn't say anything about how long you have to be in that relationship, right? Just tell him that we're making a big mistake by dating someone who we've only known for," she took a glimpse at her watch and grinned. " fifty five minutes,"

" Technically, we've known each other for almost two years," he remarked.

Kim leaned back against the door of Tommy's jeep and folded her arms in front of her chest. " We're really going to do this, aren't we? I guess I have to prepare for whatever coming tomorrow," she continued when she saw Tommy's preplexed face, " you are that guy who has a banner with your face on it, Tommy. They would throw me their lunch when they found out," she added with humor.

" Right. That banner," Tommy tugged at his pony tail. " I think I'll do what you suggested. Taking a new picture?"

" Riighttt," Kim laughed. " now you're talking,"

" Let me give you a ride home," he shrugged casually and when he was talking, his eyes shining with mischief. "_girfriend_?"

Kim shot him an amused look and pushed herself up, turning around and opening the door. " I forgot for a while that you're my boyfriend, _boyfriend_,"

" Very funny… What's your name again?"

" Shut up, Tommy,"

* * *

**: Thank you for reading and that's the end of this chapter. Pretty long one and I hope you like it. So now you know what had happened until Tommy asked Kim to be his girlfriend. Like I'd said, this was only the beginning ; ) Please don't forget to leave me your reviews, they encourage me to update. NO FLAME!**

**- Yuuri : )**


	3. Everyone, this is my

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer: Nope, not mine although everything Power Rangers unrelated was mine.**

**: Hi again! Thank you so much for all the feedbacks. Trust me, I'm trying to get better here ; ). Anyway, sorry for not updating sooner. This is the third installment. Hope you like it. **

* * *

**Chapter three: Everyone, this is my…**

This was… great. Tommy mused.

" Tommy?" Kim's voice squeaked feebly, breaking the uncomfortable silence that had been hovering for the last fifteen minutes. After it happened, they both found themselves sitting on the bench at Angel Grove Park. They needed a secluded place to talk and this was the right place… well, sort of. Those people were too busy with their own business to pay attention at the two teenagers.

Everything was going as it planned. So great that he felt like he's going to be sick.

" Yea, Kim?" somehow, he found his voice back and was able to answer. He had claimed the end of the bench while Kim had the other end. Even with the distance, it was still awkward for them. " what is it?"

" So now what do we do? I really wish that you have a back up plan,"

Did he have one? Of course not. Not even flashed in his mind that a back up plan would probably be necessary. Now who's so stupid here, please raise your hand. Tommy might as well stand up from his perched at the bench.

_Tommy walked down the stairs and peered at his watch. Sighing, he stopped when saw Kimberly waiting for him in front of his locker. _

_Ever since this morning, Jason had been nagging him about the girlfriend that he didn't know. Apparently, Alex couldn't keep his mouth shut and had told him about Kim. Typical, no surprise there._

_Both Kim and he had made a decision to keep things low between them. So that when they decided to 'break up', people wouldn't get so nosy about it. Avoiding upcoming troubles, one could say. History and Geometry were not in the Friday schedule so basically, just like any other days, Tommy and Kim dealt with their own things. _

" _Where is your girlfriend, Tommy?" Jason asked impatiently when he, Tommy and Alex were walking to their next class. He then looked at Alex who seemed as interested as he was. " are you sure about it? He hasn't seen her for like, five periods! Are you sure that he has one? Maybe it's just a silly misunderstanding?" _

_Alex shrugged. " Don't think so… but hey, Tommy, Jason's right. Where's Kim?" _

" _She has to study for the English test later in the day. We'll meet this afternoon, after school ends," he chose his words with care. Thank God, it looked like that Alex and Jason were the only two persons knew about him 'dating' Kim. Knowing them so well, it was just about time until the rest of the guys knew. Either Kim or he was cool about it. But the least, the better. " we'll go to the Juice Bar. Maybe if you're so dying to meet her, we can see you there," _

" _Kimberly aka the brunette in our History class, right? The short one?" Jason clarified. His chose of words made Tommy frown. _

" _Don't use that word," _

_The snorts coming from Alex practically clamped his mouth shut for saying anything further. He didn't mean it to sound like that. Well, but since Alex and Jason're thinking that she was his girlfriend, Tommy couldn't blame them. _

" _See, Jase? He won't protest if she's not someone important," Alex grinned. " I mean, he's one of the most ignorant people that I know," _

" _You two better be there this afternoon," Jason said. " unless you want Mrs. Meyer to have a heart attack from knowing her favorite student was the one who broke her precious statue,"_

" _We'll be there," _

_It's funny that after yesterday fiasco happened, he began to aware of his surroundings. It wasn't that he didn't pay any attention to girls before, which he didn't. But now, it amazed him when he realized that there're so many girls in this school. _

_He slowly approached the white shirted girl. She was biting her lips anxiously. It was when he realized that he too was nervous. He couldn't tell whether it was because of he's worried to be busted by Jason or because for the very first time in years, he would be walking together with a girl. _

_Tommy Oliver, the winner of the most pathetic person of the year. Congratulations. _

" _Hey, Tommy. Your girl's waiting for you," Jeff, one of his friends, said. He patted Tommy's back warmly. " way to go, Man,"_

_Alex Brennan and Jason Lee Scott. Not a very good combination. Ever. _

_So he walked to the petite gymnast- yeah, he might not know her name, but he did aware that she was a gymnast. Her beam was like in front of his practise mat in the Youth Center-, and smiled when she looked up and their eyes met._

" _Hey, Tommy," _

_Tommy tried his best to ignore all the eyes that were watching their every move. This all happened because of that stupid statue! He groaned at the back of his throat. Oh okay, because of his stupidity, actually. Totally sucks. _

" _Have you been waiting for long?" _

" _Not really. So…," her soft brown eyes reflected his own anxiety. " are you ready-," as if to lighten up the mood, she winked and added, " boyfriend?"_

_Tommy laughed. " Well, are you, girlfriend?" _

" _For someone who has to endure all those glares all morning," she replied. " I think I'm ready,"_

" _Those glares?" _

_Kim lowered her voice and said, " Don't be so dense, Tommy. If those glares could kill, I won't be here standing before you right now," _

" _They didn't difficult you, did they?" Tommy asked panicky, not too sure if Kim was only joking or not._

_Kim shook her head, one eyebrow stood up. " Come on. I have the hottest hunk in the school with black belt in karate. They're afraid that you're gonna break their arms or any other parts of the body if they dare enough to do something,"_

_Tommy kept quiet for a while and Kim bursted out laughing. " Tommy… I'm kidding. Okay? I'm trying to break the ice here. But apparently I am pretty nervous as well because that was a really bad joke,"_

_He let out a rather self-conscious laugh and nodded. He barely ever had this kind of conversations with girls before so yeah, he looked pathetic. Although he appreciated Kim for trying to cheering up. He surely needed that. When they started walking, Tommy asked, " How do you know that I'm a black belt?" _

" _The Tommy Oliver booklet. They gave it out for free," _

_He only smiled. " That was another bad joke of yours? Because that was just so bad," _

" _Just let get out of here and finish this," _

Tommy heard Kim sigh and he turned his head slightly to look at her. " A back up plan?"

" Yeah, or anything that would work,"

_Jason threw his towel back to the pile of bags on the floor. He grinned at Tommy. " So that's your girl, huh? Pretty nice," _

_Tommy had introduced,again, both Jason and Alex to Kim. He had expected for lots of annoying questions, but well, they lay low. After a round of smoothies, Kim was back on the beam while he went to work out with the boys. _

_That was like almost too easy. _

" _You got yourself a girlfriend now," Jason said. " I'm just curious though. Do you pay her or what? I'm sorry, but I don't believe that you two actually fell in love just in a matter of days. I know you, Tommy,"_

_Alex stopped and turned around to look at Tommy, waiting for his answer. Tommy could feel his face began to betray him. _

" _What do you mean?" he asked although he was perfectly clear on what Jason was saying. Tommy stalled while his brain tried to come up with answer. A convincing one. _

_Jason snickered. " You hear me. I don't know, paying her or something like that?" _

" _I don't know what you mean," that, too bad, was the most convincing answer he could come up with. Too lame. _

" _Go there and kiss her," Jason challenged, grinning mischievously. " I don't think any of us had seen you two make a physical contact with each other and well, you know me. Seeing is believing,"_

" _We're not that kind of couple who shows PDAs," Tommy answered. " and why do I have to do what you said?" _

" _Because he said so," Alex quipped. His joyful tone made Tommy want to throw something across the room. _

Tommy let his eyes lingered a little longer at the big tree about a couple meters from their place. The Park was supposed to be a place for having fun. Look at all those people. Smiling and laughing like nobody's business. The atmosphere was gloomy here. Depressing.

Kim waited patiently for him to answer but honestly, his mind went blank. There's too many things swirled around his head for him to be able to think straight.

_Tommy found himself walking towards Kim who's bending down to grab her bottle. She had her hair pinned and her body was slightly covered with sweat. Her face lit up when she saw him approaching._

" _Kimberly?" he started, not too sure how to say it but then decided to just hell with it. He felt like beating himself for letting Jason toy with him like this. People might say that he was a coward, but they just didn't have any idea of how mean his two friends could be sometimes. " I have to kiss you,"_

_Kim's eyes went saucer at the whispery statement. She frowned and seemed to have a difficulty to speak. He couldn't be serious, could he? But well, he didn't look like he's joking. She peered over his shoulders and saw Jason and Alex looking at their directions. It answered all the questions inside her head. _

_But she couldn't just let him **kiss** her. That's not on the contract. Kissing was… no, no, no. They're just pretending to be a couple. A bogus couple didn't kiss. _

_Right?_

_She gasped when suddenly Tommy lunged forward and… it's happening so fast that she didn't have time to react. His lips landed firmly on hers. Okay, not exactly on her lips, a little bit on the side of her lips. It's all the same. _

_He kissed her… without asking for permission! _

_The sudden movement almost took her off balance and fell backwards. He had his arms around her and with his lips still pressed against hers, Kim felt a little bit lightheaded. She quickly grabbed his arm to prevent her from falling down. Faintly she could hear people cheering and whistling. That was it. She angrily pushed him away, her chest heaving heavily._

The Kiss. What a coincidence. She must have thought that he took advantages from her or something like that. If she only knew... The gesture surprised him as much as it did Kim. From out of nowhere, somebody pushed him and BAM. Jason got what he'd asked. A Kiss. Whoever that person was, he or she would be sorry. As soon as he found out. It's a good thing that Kim didn't punch him or slap him back then. He explained and luckily, she understood the situation. For a while he thought she's going to faint. What a major shocker. That kiss, he meant.

On another note, it'd been quite a long time since he kissed a girl like that. By Accident or not. _Oh Oliver, go die. _

So Jason and Alex were pleased. Hopefully, that unexpectable kiss could keep Jason from asking more questions about him and Kim . Questions that Tommy wasn't sure he could answer without raising any suspicions from Jason or Alex. He'd never been a good liar and he wouldn't start now.

Kim was still blushing furiously and they had started to calm down when a familiar voice called out for him.

" _Thomas?" _

_Not so many people called him by that name around here. Only his father and mother when they're upset about something he did and his Aunt Irene. The latter was not possible because the last time he heard, she was staying with her new hubby in Greece. That only left one person. Nana Jane. _

" _Nana Jane?" _

" _Jane?" _

_Tearing his gaze from the figure of his grandmother's sister, Tommy glanced down at Kim. They both wore the same expression on their faces. _

" _You know her?" they said simultaneously. _

_His mother had told him about the possibility of Nana Jane coming across the country to visit Angel Grove. But he thought it was just a plan. He's certainly not thinking of meeting her here, at the Youth Center of all places. _

_Nana Jane was a seventy four year old highly spirited woman and Tommy loved her dearly. But what the hell she's doing here! And how on earth she could know Kimberly? _

" _Hi, Thomas," Nana Jane said with a brilliant smile that made her face wrinkle even more. " surprise to see me here?" _

" _Well, yeah," he stepped forward to hug the much older woman. " how are you, Nana?" _

_However, she didn't answer him. Instead, she moved to the petite girl standing beside Tommy who looked as shocked as he was. Tommy watched as Nana Jane hug Kim and pat her arm. _

" _Hello, Kimberly,"_

" _Hi, Jane," _

_Tommy could help no longer. His eyes moved from his grandma to his 'girlfriend'. " Do you know each other?" _

_Kim nodded. Confusion fell over her feature. " Jane is my Dad's neighbour in Houston. We met about two years ago when I visited him," _

" _Such a nice girl," Nana Jane said, her smile hadn't left her face yet. She seemed to be very delighted. "and such a nice boy. I can't ask for a better person for you, Thomas," _

_Kim went silent for a while, trying to digest all her words. She chuckled awkwardly. " No, we're not-,"_

" _Tommy!" the loud shout was followed by a little bundle dashed into his arms. The little boy clung at his legs tightly. " Nana's here!"_

" _Erick?" _

" _It's you!" Kim was taken aback. _

Okay, please let him to summarize all the things that had happened this afternoon. And what he meant by all was ALL. Every single thing since the very beginning. He really needed to do that. It was all too much for him to take.

He accidentally kissed Kim, much to Jason and Alex amusement. AND don't forget Nana Jane's.

About her… so she's here, in Angel Grove. Nana came to the Youth Center to see Ernie. It appeared that he was her friend's nephew. Yeah, Ernie, the amiable owner of the Juice Bar. How could he miss that information all this time?

The timing was so 'perfect'. Tommy thought sarcastically. That comments she made… obviously, she witnessed the kiss and well, it's just natural if she thought that Kimberly and he were together. An item. A couple. A _real_ couple.

Next, Nana Jane knew Kimberly. According to the snippets of conversation he'd heard, Tommy could tell that Nana Jane was so fond of Kim, and add that to the fact that Kim was the one who saved Erick from a guy who's trying to bully him.

This world was so so small. Just looked at all those connections. It was too bizarre until it almost frightened him. He simply couldn't believe this.

" _Oh God! This is amazing. You are the one who helped Erick. He had been talking about you since I got here," Nana Jane showered Kim with praises. Erick was Tommy's cousin from his father side. He's a little Daredevil so Tommy wasn't all that surprises when he came home yesterday and his mom told him about the little occurrence. Her mother was about to continue her story when the telephone rang. It soon turned out to be her longtime bestfriend since college and they talked for almost two hours straight. Tommy, not finding it as anything important, simply forgot about it at all. _

" _You know what?" Erick said, reaching out his hand to hold Kim's. His hazel eyes looked up at Kim admiringly. " you're totally awesome! You're like the Wonder Woman! You should see her yesterday! She could kick his butt alone," Erick said eagerly to Nana Jane and the still bemused Tommy. _

_Poor Kim. Tommy didn't know whether he had to smile or to cry when he saw her face. Anyway, before things got too far, he had to do something. _

" _Actually, Kim and I are not-,"_

" _Hi, Jane," Jason came up and greeted the old lady. Tommy closed his eyes in dismay and so did Kim.For a while, Jason and Alex vigorously chatted with Nana Jane. Tommy exchanged worried glances with Kim. They both knew that in this situation, he simply couldn't tell Nana Jane about them NOT being a couple. _

" _So, you've met Kimberly," Alex said, beaming widely and showing a perfect set of white teeth. "Tommy's new girlfriend," _

" _Yes, I have and I'm so happy for them," _

Tommy could say that he was Nana Jane's favorite grandchild. He still remembered all those times when he was a kid and Nana Jane was always there to read him storybooks every night. When Tommy was five, she moved to Houston.

Nana Jane had a heart complication that had nearly cost her life many times before. She just simply couldn't take a shock.

Telling her that he and Kim were 'just friends' and that they were just pretending to be boyfriend and girlfriend would burst her bubbles. Especially with all those things Jason and Alex had said to her about them. She was very thrilled about him having Kim as his girlfriend. Yeah, someone might think that she won a ticket to Hawaii or someplace else. At the past, whenever she got the chance, Nana Jane would ask him to hurriedly find a girl. Now she thought he had found one and that's Kim. It's better to be safe than sorry in the end.

Yeah, he couldn't just blurt it out.

Damn it.

" What do we do now?" Kim asked again, snapping him back from his reverie. He had told her about Nana Jane's health condition and she too was as concerned as he. Anyway, Kim knew better. Two years ago, when her father sent her to deliver a wrong addressed packet to Nana Jane's house, Kim found the old woman lying unconscious on the floor. She immediately called the ambulance and that was pretty much how their friendship started.

" My mom said that Nana was released from hospital about a month ago. Again. She's still pretty unstable right now," This was not a small problem although for some people, it might look like it was. It began with a _stupid_ deal. " maybe, maybe we can go on like this for a while? If you okay with it, of course," he suggested carefully.

" We remain as a couple, you mean?" Kim asked and scooted closer to him but leaving a safe distance between them.

" At least until Nana Jane heads back to Texas. Knowing her, she would ask me to bring you often to our house,"

" Why don't we just pretend to be a couple in front of her only? You understand what I'm trying to say here, don't you?" Kim searched his face. Yeah, why they didn't think about it sooner? The next second, her face fell. " I forgot about Jason and Alex. But you've won the deal. They can't threaten you with that statue non-sense anymore. Maybe you can assure them for not saying anything about the broke up in front of Jane?"

" That could work," Tommy said after thinking about the idea. Nana Jane had also thought of Jason and Alex as her grandkids already. Whenever she came for a visit, those two boys would always be there. " I'll tell them about it tomorrow,"

He could picture Jason smirking and going, _' I knew it. Oh…Tommy, you're bad'._ Oh right, whatever. Kim was right. 24 hours were long enough and Jason had to accept it and that's that. That stuff aside, Kim still had to be his 'girlfriend' in front of Nana Jane. Although he felt guilty for deceiving Nana Jane like that, it was for the best. Tommy turned his head and studied Kim's face. Was she really cool about helping him?

" This is so crazy, don't you think?" Kim sighed and leaned back. " boyfriend?"

Tommy's head rose at the mention of the B word. Kim grinned ruefully and shrugged her slender shoulders. " Are you sure?"

" You bet,"

Tommy released the breath that he didn't know he had been holding. He looked at her eyes and said sincerely, " I'm truly sorry, Kim. I didn't mean all of these to happen and thank you, thank you for understanding,"

" That's what friends are for. Right, Tommy?"

* * *

**: That's the end of this chapter and thank you for reading. Tommy, Kimberly, Jason, Alex, Nana Jane and Erick. Yeah, pretty confusing, right? Lol. Anyway, I hope I could post the next chapter soon. There's still a long and winding road in front of them, trust me. Please don't forget to leave your reviews, NO FLAME!**

**- Yuuri : )**


	4. Private Truth

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer: Any Power Rangers related is not mine.**

**:: Finally! I'm so sorry for not updating sooner. But here you go, the fourth chapter. I hope you like this one. Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter Fourth: Private Truth**

It was in the time like this that Tommy would sometimes question himself if destiny just loved toying with him. Despite anything, what just happened was just simply…

He was buried deeper and deeper in his own lie that he couldn't breathe.

_The idea was coming from out of nowhere. But it was her alright. Once she had set up her mind, nothing could shake it. It was probably where Tommy's strong determination came from. _

_Yesterday morning when they all gathered around the table and had breakfast, Nana Jane with her slightly high pitched voice declared that she would throw a small party at the house. _

_Hearing this, Tommy quickly left his sleepy state and became alert at once. What party? She'd never done something like that before. Again, just like him, Nana Jane didn't like the crowds too much. Oh, how they're so similar._

" _Nothing special," she explained casually as if she could sense the confusion. " just some of my old friends. Catching up?" _

" _Tomorrow? But isn't that a little bit too sudden?" Tommy's mother asked, putting back the napkin on her lap. " it takes time. The preparation…,"_

" _What preparation," Nana Jane scoffed. " I said a small party. There won't be any preparation needed," stubborn as a rock, just like her grandson. So that's the source of his gene pool. She looked at Tommy and smiled. " Thomas, you can send my invitations to Jason and Alex? They have to come. I'll call their folks by myself," _

" _Sure," he released a deep breath of relief. Just Jason and Alex, those two bastards. Not Jason, Alex and Kimberly. Guess today wouldn't be so bad, after all. _

_Thus Tommy did what he was told. Inviting Jason and Alex and in the process telling them about the bet they'd made. Alex was too surprise to produce a rude comment while Jason just smirked, crossing his arms over his chest. _

" _I knew it," was his only respond. _

" _Don't tell anybody, especially not Nana Jane," Tommy said louder and somewhat impatiently. " Kim and I decided to wait until she got better,"_

_Alex flung his arm around Tommy's shoulders and quipped, " Ah… how romantic. You two have started deciding things together. When's the wedding?"_

_Tommy shot him a death glare but Alex's smile only grew wider. Tommy refrained himself from choking Alex to death. " Did you hear me?" _

" _That's a little bit unfair, don't you think?" Jason asked soberly. " have you thought about this thoroughly? She might be happy right now, assuming that her beloved grandkid is dating her number one candidate to be your girl, but what if somehow, anyhow, she finds out? Not from you or Kimberly. She'll have a major heart attack and die right away,"_

_Tommy frowned at Jason's harsh words. There's a voice in the back of his mind that screamed that Jason was right. But that wouldn't happen. She wouldn't find out. " If you two keep your mouths shuts, she will be just fine,"_

" _I think Tommy has a point," Alex nodded, rubbing his chin and pretending to think about the matter seriously. Then he turned to Jason. " but you also have a point,"_

" _You're being so helpful, thanks," Tommy said sardonically. _

" _First, I can't believe that you actually… cheated so you wouldn't lose to our bet," Jason started, turning around and collecting his books from his locker. _

" _I didn't cheat alright," Tommy turned defensive all of a sudden. " I was… being creative," _

_Alex snorted. " Creative? Do you remember that thing you made for the art class? I thought it was a chamber pot when you showed me that… whatever that was," Alex laughed, recalling something which Tommy called ' the Beauty of Art' once upon a time. " seriously. It could beat Mrs. Meyer's statue anytime. It's awful. It was so ugly that it brought tears to my eyes. I didn't say anything because I wanted to spare your feelings," _

_Tommy rolled his eyes. Jason cracked a smile at that but he went back serious fast. "Second, I personally think that you got yourself karma for lying to us. Congratulations,"_

" _Very funny, Jase," Tommy replied dryly._

" _Of course it is," the boy in black retorted back. _

" _Just remember, okay, don't say a word," Tommy said once again. _

Then here came the party. It was nice and small indeed, just like Nana Jane wanted. About fifteen people came that night, mostly were her friends although Tommy did know them. Living in a city as small as Angel Grove, it's just natural.

It got more natural with Jason and Alex there. And don't forget five other people that they brought with them. All boys, all Tommy's friends. Nana Jane wouldn't mind, Tommy knew that. But still. Tommy sent Jason a look that conveyed much when he opened the door for them and got a 'who me?' look in return. What a friend.

Everything happened as it's planned. The Oliver residence had a pretty big backyard so they did most of the activities there. Tommy was in the middle of his third punch when something caught his attention.

_Everybody's coming formed a small circle and when he focused his eyes, he could see Nana Jane standing in the middle of the crowds. Smiling, she began with how pleased she was that everybody could come, yadda, yadda, yadda. After telling the guests about her latest plan in Angel Grove, she lifted her hand and gestured for him to come closer. Yes, him. _

_Okay, he knew it wouldn't be good. Tommy got this weird feeling that whatever happened would bring him straight to his doom. With a shove on the back from Jason, Tommy walked towards his grandmother. _

" _This," she said proudly, a beam marred her face. " I'm sure you know, is Thomas, or I think you all call him by Tommy these days. He's my grandchild,"_

_Tommy seemed to be rather embarrassed for the unnecessary introduction and he shot a glare towards his friends' who had started snickering. Nana Jane was a bit exaggerating. Anybody who's listening to her speech would think that she was talking about the President of the USA or someone equally important. _

"…_. And I would like you all to meet Kimberly. Thomas' girlfriend," _

_He barely registered the meaning behind those words when from the corner of his eyes, he –finally- caught the small figure of Kimberly. Looking beautiful in her lavender dress, she looked as shocked and flustered as him. _

_Oh Shit. _

_His mind scolded him for being so oblivious at her presence. Nana Jane didn't say a word about inviting her and now, out of the blue, she's going to introduce Kim to EVERYONE. Surprise surprise. _

_Tommy turned his head to see Nana Jane's serene face, a soft and satisfied smile tugged at the corner of her lips. Swallowing hard, he exchanged worried glances with Kim. She hadn't moved from her spot and Tommy could see how tight she grasp her glass. _

" _Kimberly?" Nana Jane called out for her and Tommy watched_ _as Kim walked helplessly to the front, her eyes seeking for some helps that he couldn't give. _

To make the long story short, Nana Jane then announced how she was totally delighted to see Tommy and Kim together. That's started all. She said many things that made him feel uncomfortable even just by thinking about it. Seriously. Tommy and Kimberly. They totally got the spotlight that night.

" So," Nana Jane smiled brightly towards the small crowds of the Angel Grove high students at the corner. " please, feel free to report to me anything unusual. If Thomas does anything that you all reckon as inappropriate,… what's the words? Ah, I'll deck him," that emanated laughter from the 'audience'. " Okay, Kimberly honey?"

Kim's face was as white as a paper, like the blood had been drained from her face. Tommy couldn't say that he's doing much better job.

The earlier plan wouldn't work. Not in this condition. They had to pretend to be a real couple not just in front of Nana Jane but as well in public. Only God knows what his friends would say if he told them that they were breaking up.

_Jason and Alex… _

**-Two weeks later…**

Five hugs, two pecks on the cheek and one on the lips. Such an accomplishment for a fake couple. Tommy mused as he listened to Kimberly talking beside him.

The lunch with Nana Jane went well. He couldn't believe it. She had subtly hinted about going back within two weeks or so. If that did happen, that meant they could stop pretending and stop lying to Nana Jane. He felt terrible for doing that to her.

He had gotten quite comfortable around Kim. He began to be able telling her things that he normally would share with Jason or Alex. Tommy didn't know whether he had to be relieved or disappointed when he heard Nana Jane's news. They were getting along so well. A little bit too well that he started to believe his own lie.

But it's probably for the best. Although Kim had never complained, who knows what the girl had in her heart? He owed her too much.

" You kidding me," Tommy laughed good naturedly. " and you just, slapped him? Kimberly!"

Kim chuckled. " I was in the third grade, mind you. And he's being sooo annoying! He asked me to be his girlfriend in the middle of a math quiz! Could he choose a better timing? No. And when I said no, he kept nagging me,"

" No need to land your hand on the poor boy's face, Kim," Tommy teased her, amused when her cheeks pinked.

" I've told him no for like a million of times and he went,' Why? Why you don't want to be my girlfriend? Come on, Kimmie… be my girlfriend! Gosh! Did his mother never teach him or what, I don't have any ideas,"

" Poor Brandon," Tommy coed.

" Like it's not bad enough, he started mentioning tons of boy's names, guessing which one that I liked. I just couldn't take it anymore," Kim wrinkled her nose at the memory.

" So you decided to slap him," Tommy finished for her.

" He tried to kiss me!" Kim defended herself. Her breaths came out heavily. " it just sorta happened. I didn't think straight. All I knew, I stood up, banged the table so hard and well, slapped him,"

" How could you two keep it so discreet? How about your teacher?"

" He had trouble hearing," Kim said, shaking her head. " but unfortunately, he heard the banging and ended up witnessing the violence in the classroom. The fact that Brandon started crying wasn't helping either,"

" He cried?" Tommy stifled his snort.

" Such a man. He did. I was rewarded with detentions for the whole week and not to mention the additional lecture about how fragile a boy's heart could get sometimes and how my simple act could affect his love life after that. Such a big thing for a third grader, don't you think?" Kim still remembered her classmate in the elementary school. Sandy blond hair, glasses… he looked pretty much like Billy, minus the brain, that was. He moved not long after 'it' happened.

" At least you learnt your lesson. Never slap a boy in the middle of the third period," Tommy nonchalantly said, patting her arm lightly before removing it. See? Things like that felt so natural to do sometimes. There're times where he wanted to hug or kiss her while they were not 'in action'.

Talking to Jason and Alex would be a waste of time since he could easily predict what their answers would be. _" You like her, that's why. You want her to be your real girlfriend. What's so hard to understand, Tommy? God, you're so dense sometimes,"_

Did he? Did he like her?

" You're enjoying this, aren't you? You think this is so funny,"

" Quite funny,"

" I bet you also have some good ones," Kim nudged him with her elbow. " come on, share with the class, oh the-famous-Thomas-Oliver-who-could-stop-every-girl's-heart-with-his-smile?"

He looked down at her smiling face. If he wanted to kiss her, the moment was perfect. Then it snapped him. What the hell he was thinking?

" That's a really great line," she said after a while. Getting no response, she turned her head. "I was kidding. Relax, Tommy,"

The Youth Center was not so crowded and their place was rather secluded. Should he? " Do you always slap a guy who's trying to kiss you?"

Kim raised an eyebrow. " What do you mean?"

" Say, if I kiss you right now, will you slap me?" Tommy had inched his face closer to her. He could feel his heart beating a mile an hour and his palms were sweating. He was nervous!

" Depends," Kim daringly lifted her head. " are you a good kisser or not,"

They were obviously flirting and the smirk she wore didn't help much either. A month ago he would be dead laughing if someone told him that one day in the future, he, Tommy Oliver would be flirting with a girl. But well, one could never know the future. So here he was, sitting so close to Kim and was three inches from kissing her.

He could feel her warm breaths on his face. She closed her eyes and…

" Well, well… look what we have here,"

Tommy and Kim instinctively pulled away. Groaning, Tommy was in the middle of planning Jason's demise when he lifted his head and he froze on his seat. Beside him, the petite gymnast was silent. Her face turned sheet white.

" Aaron?" the name came out bitterly from his mouth.

" Hello, Tommy," Aaron replied back. " and you two, Kimberly,"

Gone was the playful mood that was there ten seconds ago. Tommy turned his head, frowning. _Kimberly knows Aaron?_

* * *

**:: And that's the end of the chapter. Sorry for taking so long to update. Life has been pretty busy lately so I stick with making some short one-shots. Hope you enjoy them. And I'm experiencing a bit of a writers block with this story. But don't worry, hopefully I can post the next chapter soon. So there's a progress between Kim and Tommy. But here comes Aaron. Who is he? You'll find out in the fifth chapter. And you'll see more Billy, Trini and Zack. Thank you for reading and please don't forget to leave your reviews, they encourage me to update. No Flame please. Thanks.**

**- Yuuri ; ) **


	5. One night cruising

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing that related to Power Rangers. **

**:: Hi! Thank you for the reviews. I'm so glad to know that you like this story. So in the last chapter I left you with Aaron. Who the hell is he? Well, you'll find out pretty soon. Enjoy! **

**:: And MERRY CHRISTMAS!! Wishing you all have the best Christmas this year :)**

* * *

**Chapter Five: One Night Cruising**

Dark brown eyes looked back into a pair of green eyes.

" _You know what Tommy, that's it. I'm not going to give a damn care about you anymore," Aaron's green eyes were blazing with fury. He looked down at Tommy who's panting on the floor and smirked. "you're such a friend, right, Tommy? The perfect Tommy Oliver," he was clearly mocking. " it felt so good to have you as my best buddy. Guess I was wrong, huh?" _

_Tommy used the back of his hand to wipe the slight blood from the side of his mouth and he struggled to stand up. "I've told you so many times. I don't like her! How many times do I have to say that? She's a friend. Sam is…," he looked at Aaron's eyes sincerely, wanting to make sure that he believed his every word. " I never knew that she has-,"_

" _Feelings for you? Cut out the crap, Tommy," Aaron stepped closer and Tommy instinctively walked backwards. He wouldn't fight his friend, whatever the reason was. " you betrayed me," _

_Tommy cringed. The words tasted so bitter in Aaron's mouth. _

_Tommy Oliver and Aaron Smith were two best friends. The differences were plainly clear, Tommy was this nice typical guy with solid grades and good attitude while on the other side, Aaron was the bad guy who once used to do drugs. Many people often wondered why they could be good friends at the first place. _

_They just didn't know. Never judge a book by its cover, Tommy might say. Tommy felt ashamed whenever he remembered that he used to be one of those people. Until that detention that changed his opinion. Aside from the failing grades and everything, Aaron was a good man. One just had to take time and learn how to understand him. There're some people who wanted to get to know him because they pity him for having such a gloomy background. It's a shame because one thing that Aaron hated the most was a hypocrite._

_Aaron's parents died in a car accident when he was in his early teen and since then he had been staying with his foster parents. Jen and Andy were never good role models for him. He sometimes showed up with bruises on his arms or face. Aaron was not that good of a liar that he could deceive Tommy for long._

_He probably didn't have the best behavior but the looks certainly spoke differently. Aaron was a good looking guy with dark spiked hair and the deepest green eyes. He's tall and sometimes the attitude just made girl find him more interesting and somewhat mysterious. _

" _Look, Aaron," Tommy started desperately. " I've made myself clear that I just thought of her as a friend. A sister. Nothing more, nothing less,"_

" _If you really think that I will believe you, Tommy… you should've known me better than that," Aaron shook his head in despair, his voice filled with unmistakable disgust. Tommy stared at Aaron silently. " I was such a fool. You must think that I'm so stupid. An idiot," _

_Tommy rolled his eyes, lost for anything else to say. Aaron was stubborn that way and he wouldn't change. One wouldn't want to mess with him even it was to save their lives. Furious Aaron was simply not a pretty picture. He wouldn's stop until he's satiated._

_When Sam suddenly lunged forward and kissed him, Tommy felt like he had been struck by lightning. He was so surprised that it was not until eight seconds later that he tried to pull away from her. Could the timing be more 'perfect'? Aaron was standing in front of the classroom to witness all. Damn it. _

_Samantha King was a pretty petite girl with auburn hair that had captured Aaron's heart since so long time ago. They were good friends. She was there from day one, when Aaron lost his natural parents and struggled to settle in with his new guardian and beside Tommy, she's the only one who could 'tame' Aaron's wild side. Sadly, as brave as Aaron was to insult a teacher, he was as shy as a kitten to admit his feelings. _

_And then he saw his own best friend kiss the girl of his dream. Well, that wasn't exactly how it happened, but that's what Aaron saw and he refused to believe otherwise. The end of the story. _

" _You're a piece of shit, Tommy,"_

" Aaron?" Tommy finally succeeded in saying something. " what are you doing here?"

The other guy walked closer and seated himself to the vacant chair across Kimberly. Tommy could see that her body went rigid at once. " Surprised? I moved back. Andy got a job back in town,"

Tommy noticed that Aaron still call Andy by his name. Something had never changed.

They didn't talk for such a long period of time after the misunderstanding. Aaron refused to hear any explanation from Tommy and Tommy finally got tired of his friend's attitude. It stunned him that a girl could ruin their friendship that he thought would last. A girl, for God's sake! Maybe that was one of many reasons that he never found girls interesting. He had such a bad history with their kind. But that didn't mean that he had preferences for men! He grimaced when Jason's nasty joke came to mind. Aaron moved to San Diego without telling him, leaving their unsolved cold war between them.

Then Tommy started developing close friendships with Jason and Alex and now they were nearly inseparable.

Tommy was quite for a while. Aaron didn't change a bit. The hair was a bit longer but everything else was still pretty much the same. What kept Tommy to stay alert was the fact that Aaron seemed to be acting _very_ nice to him. Learning from the past, Tommy fully comprehended that Aaron never forgot his grudge effortlessly.

" So, you're going to Angel Grove High?" Tommy carefully asked.

" Of course," Aaron nodded. Then he directed his eyes to the girl sitting beside Tommy and smiled broadly, leaning forward and clasping his hands together. " hi, Kim. How are you?"

It was when Tommy realized that she hadn't said a single solitary word since five minutes ago. He turned his head and frowned when he saw her face. She's really pale, as white as she had been that time in Nana Jane's party. " Kim?" he called softly.

She blinked and forced a tiny smile. " Yeah, hey, Aaron. I'm fine,"

" From what I saw… you two are an item, huh?" Aaron questioned her, smirking.

Kim exchanged secretive glances with Tommy but not answering the question. As if he could sense her nervousness, Tommy took over. "Sometimes what you see is not always the truth," he said, hinting at the scene in the past that involved both of them and a certain girl named Samantha King. Sam's still there. She's the captain of the Angel Grove High cheerleader squat. She seemed to be lost of interest towards Tommy once Mike, her boyfriend for almost two years now, was transferred from Canada.

Aaron's eyes moved to Tommy and for a second Tommy thought that Aaron's going to snap back or merely hit him for stating the comment. But his eyes softened and he, much to Tommy's surprise, offered a sad smile. "Let's move forward,"

Before Tommy could react, Aaron had checked his watch and got to his feet. " I have to go. Nice to meet you again. Both of you. See you at school,"

Tommy watched as Aaron walked towards the exit. Was this real or it's just one of his dreams? A fully upgraded attitude Aaron's coming back? It had been almost two years. Two whole years of peace.

" I think I better go home now," Kim's voice broke the uncomfortable silence. She bended down and picked up her gym bag, moving so fast until Tommy grabbed her wrist to still her movements. She eyed him questioningly. Her face slightly flushed but somehow he knew it had nothing to do with the contact.

" Are you okay?"

She nodded, too quickly not to arouse his suspicion even more. " I'm just tired,"

" You want me to drop you off?" he stood on his feet, towering over her now. Kim looked smaller than she normally was. He arms were swinging carelessly on her sides.

" I'll be fine," she assured him though he wasn't that convinced and slowly pulled her hand from his grasp.

Kimberly did look like she wanted to run away from him. Sighing, Tommy opened his arms and embraced the gymnast in a safe tight hug, feeling her body stiffen before she too returning the gesture. They stayed like that for a moment until Kim pulled back, smiling up at him. "See you tomorrow,"

" Bye,"

His eyes followed her. There's something that had been nagging his mind but he's not quite sure what it was. He couldn't put his finger on it. _Come on, Tommy, think!_ Something…His first year…there's a girl, a girl… Ten seconds had passed when it hit him. _Oh my…_

**.::Kimberly::.**

" I can't believe that I can be this stupid, Trini," Kim nearly cried into the phone. The first thing that she did after she got home was to call her best friend. She was shocked, flabbergasted, surprised, anxious… she could go crazy unless she poured everything out. " he's Tommy's friend! I should have realized that! Now that I think about it, he _was_ there! Tommy! They used to be the best of friends until Aaron moved,"

" _First, you have to calm down, Kimberly,"_ Trini wisely advised. But she couldn't do that, could she?

Kim bit her lips so hard until she thought it would bleed. Her mind went back to the time that she desperately wanted to forget.

_She was so happy. So very much. Aaron had asked her to go to Leslie's party together. Kim was walking in cloud nine and she couldn't stop smiling that day. _

" _Hey, Kimberly? So, wanna go with me? To that party?" he asked with that famous grin tucked at the corner of his lips. She couldn't even think, let alone answering the offer. _

She always found him attractive. How could she not. He's handsome, maybe not a very nice guy for some people, but in her eyes he's just lonely. As sappy as this sounded and as immature she was, that time she thought that she had finally found the man for her.

" _Me? Are you sure?" she replied pathetically. _

_Aaron cocked an eyebrow before laughing casually. " Sure? Of course I am. So what'd you say?" _

_That thought quickly vanished into thin air when he didn't show up. After waiting for nearly two hours, the first drop of tears finally hit her cheeks. Aaron Smith was standing her up. And to worsen the matter, the next day there's a rumor in school about her foolishness. She was simply a victim. Over a stupid bet that Aaron had with his buddies. It was like how it happened in those movies! All the looks she got when she stepped into the building… Kim wanted to die. _

_Of course, she was an idiot. How could someone like Aaron ask someone like her? How could she be so stupid to think that he really liked her? That they might have a chance? She was so naïve. If only she were brave enough to confront him… but no, she was too much of a coward. _

_What had started as something that she called 'love' quickly dissolved to hatred_. _She loathed him. Moron_.

And he was there the whole time… Tommy!

" _Kim? Kimberly? You still there?" _

" Yeah, Trini," Kim wiped the angry tears from her cheek. " Tommy never said something about that. He must think that I'm… Could he… play with me like Aaron did to me? He _should_ say something, damn it!" Tommy was a really sweet guy and she had begun to like him. Properly. Really like him as a guy and not just as a friend. Furthermore, she had become attached to his family. Nana Jane, Erick…The little boy was like a younger brother that Kim longed to have. He's simply adorable.

"_It may sound weird, buy maybe he forgot about it? It happened a long time ago, Kim,"_ Trini tried to reason. _" and you said it yourself, Tommy doesn't have the best memory. You can tell that he's one of those indifferent people,"_

" I don't know…," Kim murmured, feeling uncertain not just about Tommy but also about everything.

" _You should talk to him," _

" I, I can't. He will laugh at me," Kim stammered. The idea made her heart ache.

" _No, he won't,"_ Trini protested. _" come on. I only know him for a short time but I can tell you that he's not a person like that. He's different from Aaron," _

Kim closed her eyes tightly. Aaron. She never thought there would be a day that they'd meet again. The smirk… she wanted to get sick.

" _How is he?"_ Trini asked quietly.

Kim closed her eyes, feeling the heat rising on her face. After good long moments, she stammered, "Well, as much as I hate him, he's still… Aaron, you know? Handsome, gorgeous eyes…and he has grown out his hair. Not as long as Tommy's but it's longer now," He still had the same killer smile and his eyes were still captivating as ever.

But none of that mattered anymore now. Right?

" _He'll be there tomorrow, I assumed? At school?" _

" Gosh, yeah, I think so," Kim didn't even want to think about the possibility of being in one building with him.

" _Before you say anything else, you must talk to Tommy first," _Trini insisted. _" listen to what he says and then we'll see," _

Kim sighed. Maybe Trini's right… or not? Oh boy, she didn't want to go to school tomorrow!

* * *

**:: Someone from the past comes back and he certainly will make things get more complicated. I'm sorry that this chapter isn't very good and satisfying, I honestly say that this isn't my best. I'm not feeling really well. Thank you for reading and please send me your feedback. No flame please. Thanks.**

**- Yuuri ;)**


	6. The Beginning

**The Sun, The Moon and The Stars**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything that related to Power Rangers.**

**:: Thank you for everyone who had reviewed. I would update sooner but my internet connection has been crappy lately and life has been so busy. I honestly say that writing down the ideas in my head is harder than I thought. This is the sixth chapter. I hope you like it.**

* * *

**Chapter Six: The Beginning**

" What the hell were you thinking?" Zack nearly flamed Kim when the petite brunette showed up at school looking like a total wreck. Trini who was standing right next to him instantly landed a playful smack on his arm. "It's true! See for yourself,"

Kim could only smile watching her two bestfriends bantering over her condition. She took a tissue paper from her pocket and blew her nose, not feeling a little bit better than when she woke up this morning. Her nose hurt from sneezing countless times.

" Kim, why did you take a shower at one in the morning? Using cold water! Or did you..," Zack stopped at mid-sentence, leering at her before receiving Kim's most dangerous glare. He knew better so he stopped. "okay, forgive me. But come on! Now look at yourself,"

" You should be resting at home," the pretty Vietnamese said softly.

" Hey guys!" Jason's deep voice boomed through the corridor and the three of them automatically turned their heads. Jason and Alex, minus Tommy, were walking towards their directions. Kim took a deep breath of relief. She wasn't ready yet to face Tommy and as Trini had pointed out yesterday, talk to him about…everything. After their phone call ended, she realized that Tommy couldn't be toying with her. That problem with Nana Jane came totally unplanned. Furthermore, Kim knew that Trini was right. Tommy was different from Aaron.

" Where's Tommy?" Alex directed the question to Kim who returned it with a shrug. "God, Kim, you look like hell. Did you two have a fight?" he asked again although the truth was now already out in the open.

" She lost her voice," Billy kindly explained when Kim didn't answer.

" Kim caught a cold because she took a cold shower at one in the morning yesterday," Zack summarized. He just had to say that. Both Jason and Alex raised their eyebrows simultaneously and Zack quickly added, " no dirty thoughts allowed!"

" Wow, so you can't talk at all? Come on, say, 'Mommy'," Alex said half jokingly.

Kim wrote at the little notebook she had brought with her, just in case, and shoved it in front of Alex's face. _' Don't make me kick you,'_

Alex grinned good-naturedly. Trini repeated Kim's earlier notes. " She can talk if she wants to, which she doesn't. And even if she talks, whatever comes out of her mouth will make a perfect imitation of the voice of a wounded dinosaur,"

" Well, look at the bright side. At least now the teachers can't tell you to answer their questions," Jason, who always thinks positively, said. " you're lucky,"

_And Trini can't force me to talk to Tommy about Aaron. That's the best good side effect coming from this minor catastrophe._ Kim only nodded in response.

The bell rang and they went into their separated classes.

**- Lunch Break**

**Angel Grove High**

Coughing, the gymnast closed her locker after shoving all her books inside. She still could feel her heart beating so fast like she just did a marathon and her knees almost didn't hold.

They talked. Kimberly Hart and Aaron Smith were finally talking. Well, not exactly _talking_ because she, obviously, was not in any shape or condition to exchange words with anybody, not just him. But basically they talked or in this case, communicating through hands gestures and through his Biology notebook.

_She would scream if she were capable of doing that. Her heart dropped to the pit of her stomach when the door opened in the middle of the lesson, revealing the tall guy that once used to be her moon and stars. Aaron was late. He really was Tommy's best pal, though she could say that Tommy had gotten better by now. _

" _Class, this is Aaron from…," Mr. Young turned to the new guy. " San Diego, right? He will be your friend for the rest of the year," _

_Aaron grinned casually and nodded in agreement. " I went to Angel Grove High before moving. So, I know some of you and I think you haven't forgot about me, right?" _

_And then he winked at her. At HER! O-kay… she might be acting with excessive confidence by saying that. But he did send a wink towards her direction. Why would he wink to Bulk and Skull, who were sitting right behind her? Or at Billy? She never quite understood but there's this uncomfortable tense between Aaron and her genius friend. _

_First he winked at her ( or so she thought) and second, the only empty chair in the class was located right beside hers so it was only a matter of time until Aaron finished his introduction and sat at that vacant chair. Beside her. Oh God. _

**_Relax, Kim. You lost your voice. See? This is the bright side. Talking to Tommy? No biggie. Talking to Aaron? Hell no!_**

_Within no time, Aaron's short speech was done and Kim burried her head deeper in her thick textbook, silenty hoping he wouldn't see her. Was that far too much to ask? She lifted her right hand, trying to block her face from Aaron's view. _

**_Kimmie…, if that wink were really meant for you, that means he already saw you. IF. There's a ninety nine percents possibility that he wasn't even winking. Maybe he had dust in his eyes or maybe he was-_**

"_Kim?" a voice cut her babbling. Kim closed her eyes tightly. No, no… there's no one called out for her. That's just merely her imagination. But then she heard her name again, louder this time. "Kimberly?"_

_Trying as hard as she might, Kim couldn't just ignore it again. Especially after Aaron nugded her arm with his pencil. Inhaling a deep breath of air, Kim mustered all the courage she would need and slowly put her arm down. Aaron smiled. He looked relieved that Kim didn't act as if she had amnesia and didn't know him. _

" _Hi," he said, smiling that wonderful smile that used to seize her heart. " I'm glad we're in the same class. I don't know half the people here," _

_**Really? Talk to yourself, Mr. Popular.** Since she couldn't say that to his face, she just wrote at the blank part of her book. **'Catch a cold. Can't really talk now. Sorry.'** Simple and short but clear enough. Kim turned her attention back to Mr. Young who had resumed the lesson. _

_Her feet tapped at the floor anxiously. If Tommy were here, things wouldn't get this complicated. Tommy and Aaron might be friends, but seeing their interactions yesterday at the Youth Center, they both were acting really weird. Trini told her that there's a rumor back then about how they're fighting over a girl. That should explain the behaviours. Somehow, it upset Kim to know that one fact._

_Was she jealous? She couldn't be… they're just pretending after all. Pretending as in, they were not really together, but in order to keep Nana Jane happy and all, they had to be boyfriend and girlfriend. She had no right to be jealous of that other girl. What did she expect? Tommy was almost perfect. It's just normal if a perfect guy dated a perfect girl. Oh yeah, she was not jealous at the slightest. _

_Who was she, anyway? Kim made a mental note to ask Trini about it later. Or if she were brave enough, Tommy. On second thought, no way. He might think that she was one nosy girl and she definitely didn't want that. **Remember, Hart… curiosity kill the cat.**_

_Another nudge on her elbow and she looked to her right, feeling rather annoyed. Aaron gave her his book and she reluctantly took it. When she looked down, she almost screamed. He called her 'Honey'?? Oh, no. Her bad. On the front page, Aaron's bold hand writing said, **' It happened to me once. Try honey, you'll get better in no time. By the way, does he always teach this boring?'**_

_The past Kim would die from happiness but not this Kim. She couldn't believe that they're passing notes in Mr. Young's Biology class. In fact, she couldn't believe that they're passing notes at all. It was almost like they're friends. Why did he act so strangely? Didn't he remember about what he had done two years ago?_

'_**Really? I don't know that. And yes, unfortunately he always teaches like this.'** Kimberly half- heartedly replied, keeping one eye at Mr. Young before passing back the book. _

_Kim tried to take notes but found her mind went blank. Her palms were wet and her feet continued tapping the floor faster than ever. Aaron put the book on her desk. _

'_**And are you always acting this cold to a newbie? grin' **_

_Kim's eyebrow rose. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Aaron diligently writing down Mr. Young's explanations about the mammals' reproduction system. Whales'. What should she write? **'Why? If you don't like it then don't talk to me.' **Or **'So what? Do you have problems with that?' **or **'Not really. But since you're the newbie, yeah, I am'**._

_No. Don't invite troubles. Kim impatiently wrote,** ' Sorry, it's probably the cold.' **_

_Thank God. Before Aaron got the chance to write back, the bell rang, saving her from the evil thread of Aaron Smith. Kim had no desire to stay longer so she quickly collected her books, and with a polite nod to Aaron, left the classroom. _

" Hey, Kim,"

She looked over her shoulder and a smile blossomed on her face when she saw Tommy coming her way. Her heart thumped a bit faster inside her chest. Unlike with Aaron, this was a completely different feeling and Kim enjoyed every bit of it. It always happened lately. Did it mean something? Anything? She didn't have the time to explore it yet.

Tommy looked good. He always looked good but white on him was just totally hot. Did she just think that??

She returned his greeting with a smile. When Tommy reached her, he surprised her by grabbing her and tugged her body into his chest, hugging her tightly like they hadn't met for a year. Someone's surely in a good mood today.

Kim looked up at him in confusion when he finally put her down. Tommy seemed to understand and said, "Sorry. Just needed to do that,"

_Is it just me or is it getting hot in here?_ Kim cocked an amused eyebrow. After the Aaron thing this morning, she definitely could use the Tommy time.

" How are you? I was running late this morning," he said sheepishly. Tommy and his lack of punctuality were just inseparable. When Kim didn't answer, he asked, "Kim?"

She put her hand around her neck and opened her mouth, trying to non-verbally tell him about her latest condition.

" What? Do you want me to choke you?" Tommy laughed and got a 'very funny' look from the brunette in pink. Kim was halfway reaching inside her locker to grab her notepad when Tommy stilled her movement. "I'm kidding. Jason told me what happened. You okay? You're not running a fever, are you?" his question was followed by the back of his hand touching her forehead briefly.

Kim shook her head, all the while feeling her face flush deep red. They're looking at each other, no words were said for some time. Kim bit her lips nervously.

" Tommy,"

Kim's good mood crashed down immediately. Standing behind Tommy was Aaron. Her 'boyfriend' turned around to face him. Tommy was no longer smiling either. Kim watched them in silent. Well, it's not like she could go, " Hey, Aaron, back off,"

" We need to talk," Aaron stated simply.

There're eight seconds even before Tommy answered. " Sure," he looked back at Kim and gave her a small, tight smile. " I'll be right back,"

Kim watched them walking away. Right before they turned around the corner, Aaron looked behind him and –this time she was sure- winked at her.

Gosh.

* * *

**:: And that's the end of this chapter. So Aaron is now officially coming back to Kim and Tommy's lives. What could possibly happen next? More drama it is. Please review, I'd love to hear from you. No flame though. Thanks.**

**- Yuuri ;)**


	7. Before you turn away

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer: No, not mine. **

**:: Sorry for not updating sooner. I decided to work on 'Not Brave Enough' first, another TK story in the making. Check it out! Anyway, this is the new chapter. Hope you enjoy.**

* * *

**Chapter seven: Before You Turn Away**

_Okay. That guy really has a loosened bolt inside his head_, Kim thought. The hair behind her neck was still standing, thanks to that wink Aaron sent. He's crazy, that's pretty much all she could say about him.

Kim chewed her lips nervously. People walked passed her wouldn't realize the battle took place inside her head. _You shouldn't. It really isn't your business, at all. Don't be nosy. Get it, Kimberly? You'll regret it. Just don't. _

With her mind all set up, she nodded, fished out her hankie from her locker and banged it close with a new determination. She knew that it was not her place. Tommy would tell her if he wanted to, but she didn't think she could just sit back and wait.

While knowing completely what the consequences of her action would be, Kim blatantly tried to ignore all the voice screaming inside her head. _They can't be far._

So it began. The mission of Kimberly Hart: Hunt down Aaron Smith and Tommy Oliver.

This was too pathetic. She would happily talk to Trini first but her Vietnamese best friend had this important meeting with her fellow volleyball teammates. Didn't want to waste more time, Kim quickened her pace.

Tommy would kill her if he knew. That's why she would be very, _very_ careful. After all, how about that one time in the fifth grade when Zack, Billy, Trini and she tried to sneak out of her house to go on a picnic under the moonlight? Well, it wasn't a really successful mission, because they got caught before they even left the front yard. But it was because of Zack's fault. If only he hadn't let out that stupid, big sneeze, her father who she found hadn't gone to bed yet in the end, wouldn't have heard him. It was simply a miscalculation. _Yeah, right… _They were grounded for a good long week after that. Not a very pleasant experie- _Hey! Stop!_

Kicking herself for thinking about an unimportant thing in the middle of such an important moment like this, Kim abruptly stopped when she saw Tommy and Aaron standing in front of restroom. Kim panicked. Looking around her, there wasn't actually something that she could use to hide herself. But she didn't have to though because it was obvious that the two boys weren't aware of her presence.

Another wave of panic struck her. Whatever Aaron wanted to say to Tommy, he wouldn't tell him in the restroom, right? _Boys'_ lavatory. Kim's shoulders slumped down. Maybe she should take this a sign for not meddling in. But couldn't he choose a better place? She meant, lavatory? It clearly wasn't the most sophisticated place to have a heart to heart conversation.

Relief washed all over her when Aaron went inside without Tommy. Her faux boyfriend sneered and with his hands shoved deep inside his jeans pockets, walked to the classroom located in the end of the corridor.

Kim waited impatiently in her place. She could feel her palms were slightly wet from…excitement? She wouldn't say that tailing Tommy and Aaron behind excited her in any ways. Nervousness? That's more like it.

If someone asked her about this sudden changed of attitude… Okay, the truth was, she was anxious as hell that Tommy and Aaron were just toying with her behind her back. Maybe everything was just a set up to embarrass her in the future. The phone call with Trini last night… Kim really wanted to believe that Tommy was different from Aaron, but after experiencing such a humiliation years ago, being a little bit careful wouldn't hurt.

However, the cold war between Aaron and Tommy wasn't difficult to see. Yesterday and today, two days were more than enough for her to say that what was there two years ago had completely gone. They're almost like a stranger around each other.

Kim straightened her back when Aaron walked out of the boy's room. He seemed to be in no hurry. As Aaron walked lazily, Kim got a chance to look at him. _Or his back_. She pursed her lips. That guy was the one who used to have her heart in his grasp. It's a shame that he trampled over it mercilessly.

_Those jeans fit him really, really well. _The next second Kim mentally scolded herself for even daring enough to think about THAT. _Kim, wake up. That guy is nothing more than a trash._

Kimberly took a few moments to cough and blow her nose. It wouldn't be funny if this cold acted up when she did her… spying.

The brunette casually scanned the corridor. It was almost empty. Most of the students were in the main hall to watch the students' debate competition about the new school's regulation. Inhaling a deep breath of air, Kim leaned down and pressed her ear against the closed door.

* * *

"So, what do you want to say to me?" Tommy inquired, choosing not to look into Aaron's eyes. The pony tailed martial artist leaned back against the wall and busied himself by studying the world map hanged beside the bookshelf.

Aaron walked around and took a seat on the teacher's desk, a broad grin marred his face. "Don't be so uptight, Tommy,"

"What do you want?"

"Come on! Can't old friends who haven't met for years catch up? So, how thing's going?" Aaron reached out his hand and idly played with the calendar sitting on the table.

Tommy should've remembered that Aaron hardly ever took things seriously. "I'm fine. Just get to the point, will you?" he said with no small amount of irritation in his voice.

Instead of answering Tommy's question, Aaron lifted his hazel eyes which were twinkling with highly amusement. "Your little girl seems to be a perfect match for you,"

Tommy tried to look for the sarcasm lacing Aaron's words but found none. That or Aaron had become a greater actor these days. "You didn't have to bring me here just to congratulate me," he said tightly.

"Look, Tommy," Aaron hoped down from the table and brushed his hands together. "Like I said yesterday, why don't we forget the past and move forward? I admit that the confrontation between us was very immature. God, it was only because of a girl," he added lightly, like it didn't matter at all; unlike those years ago. "I shouldn't misjudge you like that. I mean, you're my friend, you wouldn't let me down, right?"

"And it took you two years to realize that," Tommy replied curtly. Aaron had moved so that he stood right in front of Tommy. Aaron punched his arm lightly before striding back to his previous place.

"Sam looks so happy with her boyfriend," Aaron commented congenially. "Good for her,"

* * *

Kim bit her lips. So Trini was right. There's a girl. _Sam? Samantha King?_ _Tommy liked her?_ _Well, she's pretty so it's quite reasonable if he liked her_… _He liked her?_ Kim asked herself again, her breath coming out harshly. Keeping one eye to the still empty hallway, Kim waited for more to come, but they didn't talk much. From what she had heard, Aaron was apologizing for being such a moron to Tommy and then came lighter topics; not exactly a backroom conversation. Somehow she could sense that the tense between Aaron and Tommy hadn't fully resolved.

There was a moment of silence that followed Tommy's awkward laughter. Kim wiped her nose with her hankie. _Okay. You get your butt out of here. You got what you wanted. Tommy wasn't Aaron's associate. Happy now? _

Kim was reconsidering to tell Tommy that she was, not eavesdropping, she was just merely… exploring her curiousity. He wouldn't be thrilled, that's for sure. But the confession would come after she asked him about the disaster two years ago. She would listen to what he say first and then after that… yeah, she would tell him.

It happened so fast… the door was suddenly being opened from the inside and she couldn't do anything to prevent herself from falling forward. Kim shut her eyes tightly, afraid of what she would see if she kept them open. She was _sooo_ busted. This was even worse than that time when she was still in the elementary school.

Kimberly Hart: Mission Failed. Failed oh-so-miserably.

" Kim?!" that was Tommy.

She hissed in pain. Well, not exactly in pain because she didn't land on the floor. She was… _Oh no…_

Kim was lying right on top of Aaron. AARON. She was body pressed with the last guy on earth that she wanted to see. Like being busted wasn't bad enough, this also had to happen to her.

"Kimberly?" it was Aaron now. Great. Now she also had to explain to him too.

She was indeed aware of how every inch of Aaron's body pressed against her smaller form and how his hands somehow landed on her back. Her face was buried into his chest and she could smell the faint scent of his aftershave.

_Kim, get up, now! _

She braced herself on either side of Aaron's body and pushed herself up but then another hiss escaped her mouth. Somehow, anyhow, her hair got caught in Aaron's jacket's zipper. Kim would scream if only she was capable of doing just that. However Kim managed to emit a groan.

"Kim?" Tommy said, still shocked of what had happened. First Aaron shushed him with a finger on his lips. Then Aaron walked to the door, opened it with one quick move and… Kimberly tumbled forward, sending Aaron and her straight to the hard cold surface of the floor. "Are you okay?"

_Okay? Does she look okay? She's far from okay! _With a lot of efforts, Aaron and Kim succeed to get on their feet. Kim's head was still nestled on his chest although she tried to create as much distance as she could with him.

"What the hell were you doing?" Aaron asked breathlessly, putting his hand on Kim's head just to be slapped away by her. Hearing her protest growl, he snapped his fingers. "Oh, okay, I forgot that you can't exactly answer my question,"

Kim tried to pull back but it still stuck. Her stupid hair. The last thing she needed right now was Aaron taking off his shirt so they could… Kim, Kim, KIM!

"Okay, why don't we..," Kim's brown eyes widened in horror when she saw helplessly Aaron reaching his hand to grab a scissors from the desk. _He_ _wouldn't_ _dare_. She stomped on his foot and her hand slapped his arm to still his movement. "Hey, Kim, easy does it,"

Aaron held Kim's head in place and she closed her eyes when the hand holding the scissors slowly got closer and closer to the hair stuck around his zipper.

He cut it. Tommy's interruption came far too late. She watched in tremor as Aaron tried to free his zipper from strands of chestnut hair. _Her_ hair. Kim was too flabbergasted to react. Two seconds later and Aaron threw the hair on the floor.

"How," she coughed. "da- you!" Kim touched her head. Her hair was wild and the remaining strand of hair that had been stucked around his zipper dangled in front of her face. He had cut it at least five centimeters. Her hand was already half up, ready to deliver a slap on that face but someone held her back. Tommy.

"I was trying to help you," Aaron said, feeling the need to defend himself. Kim narrowed her eyes and threw him her dirtiest look. "you didn't want to be stuck by my side for the rest of the day, did you?" he actually had the nerve to bend down and gather the chocolate strand. "It's not that much. They'll grow back before you know it,"

"Hw culd y- say tht so esly?" Kim nearly spat, holding her throat. " yo- din't evn ask me!" Kim slammed her small fist down on the table beside her.

"Look, I'm sorry, okay," Aaron lifted his hands. " it's not that bad. Look for yourself. You could set the new trend,"

"Enough," Tommy stepped in, grabbed Kim's hand and tugged the still fuming gymnast close to his side. When his arm circled her shoulders, she could feel her anger starting to subside. _So it's not that much, but he couldn't just cut it! Gosh. _

"Aaron, apologize to Kim," Tommy stated in a firm tone, giving Kim's shoulder a squeeze.

_It's better if you drop down on your knees_, _buddy_, Kim thought meanly.

" I'm sorry, Kim," Aaron said after glancing briefly at Tommy. "I shouldn't have done that,"

_The hell you shouldn't._ Kim wanted Tommy to release her because it's hard to remain angry with him being so close to her. That guy really needed to be taught a lesson. Kim glared at Aaron menacingly.

" I think it's better if you leave," Tommy said after a while. "Kim and I need to talk,"

"Well, well," Aaron spoke up. " I won't disturb you two lovebirds. I'm deeply sorry about that, Kim," to make a dramatic effect, he bowed slightly. "See you later," with that said, Aaron walked backwards and closed the door, leaving Kim and Tommy all alone in the classroom.

"You okay?" Tommy asked again, lifting his hand to smooth her tousled hair. Kim gave a nod. "Come here," he pulled his hair free from the rubber band and turned her around. "This should do," he combed her hair with his fingers and pulled it back into a pony tail. What was left of the strand of hair Aaron'd cut tucked neatly behind her left ear. "but maybe you have to fix this with Trini later. Girls know everything," he chuckled.

"Thanks," Kim mouthed self-consciously. How could she lose her patience in front of Tommy like that? But Aaron was really such a jerk. He didn't deserve to live. Kim didn't care if she sounded so heartless. At this point, she would throw him that thick dictionary when she met him again.

"It's okay. What Aaron did was wrong," Tommy said absently and he dropped his hand from its place around her slender shoulders. "What that's all about?"

Kim looked up at his face. He didn't look upset. Surprised, but not mad. Lost for anything else to do, she simply mouthed, "I'm sorry,"

"Were you… overhearing us?" Tommy asked. Once he looked at her crestfallen face, he quickly said, "I'm not angry, I just… Well, it's okay, maybe we can talk about this later-"

Kim shook her head quickly. It must be finished right now, in this room. Damn this cold! And Aaron too! She walked in a small circle, thinking about a way to tell him under her condition. In the end, she simply grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil from the desk. Tommy seated himself in one of the front row chairs and waited for Kim to finish writing. She turned around and put the paper on the table.

'_I'm sorry. I was, I'll make this simple, Tommy. I just wanted to know whether you have something up against me or not. You and Aaron, that is. I didn't mean to eavesdrop.'_

Tommy read it and looked back at Kim. "Was this about what happened two years ago?"

He surprised her with his boldness. She didn't expect it to be this easy, she didn't even have to bring up the topic. "Yes," a dinosaur-like voice answered and Tommy grinned. She cleared her throat with a loud voice while trying to hide her blush. Yelling at Aaron had worsened her voice.

" Look, Kim. I honestly say that I forgot about that. It's not until yesterday when Aaron came and then I saw how you two act around each other that I… I didn't realize that you're the one,"

Kim gave him a skeptical look. She took the paper and wrote. _'Come on. You were like twins back in the day. And now you tell me you didn't know that the girl was ME?'_

"I understand how you must be feeling, Kim," Tommy sighed, supporting his head with his hand. "I knew about the bet he had but I didn't really pay attention. It's not my thing,"

'_But you did know that the girl was me, right?'_ Kim prompted. Her insistence was clear in her handwriting.

"I knew it was you, but I didn't know you back then," Tommy admitted. "and well, you know me, I didn't take it too seriously. What Aaron did wasn't my problem, although I did scold him for doing such a low thing. I remember about the rumor," he nodded. "but that's just it. Many things came up after that so I just forgot about it,"

"When you askd me to hlp you," Kim left the paper on the table. She coughed once and swallowed hard before continuing with hoarse voice. "you knw, didn't yu?"

"No," Tommy answered sincerely and he stood up. Kim moved to give him room. He looked down at her face and put his hands on her shoulders. "I guarantee you, I'm not playing with you, okay? You have my words. About me and Aaron… things between us are still rocky. It feels like I don't know him anymore,"

Kim didn't say anything, just offering her silence support. Tommy was confused and that made him frustated at the same time. Realizing that she had been a little harsh, she whispered, "I'm sorry,"

His hands were still resting on her shoulders. Kim lifted her head and met Tommy's dark brown eyes. They were so beautiful, a girl could simply lose herself in those brown orbs. Tommy grinned, his endearing smile turned on so bright and her heart skipped one beat then seemed to stop altogether.

She kissed him. She didn't realize of what she had done until she pulled back and looked at Tommy's surprised face. It was very brief. The kiss.

Kim stepped backwards, her face burning hot. She opened her mouth but nothing came out. What should she do? Apologize? She didn't even know where the urge to kiss him came from! It was there and rejected it was futile. Oh boy, she did kiss him, didn't she?

"We should go," Kim said croakily. God. She kissed this man and all she could say was 'we should go'?

"Yeah, maybe we should," Tommy said after looking at her for a second or two. Kim couldn't meet his eyes, she was too embarrassed. "The break will be over soon,"

Kim nodded and turned around. The better she went out of here, the better. She knew there's going to be something wrong today. The hunch was so strong that all she wanted to do when she woke up this morning was pull the covers back over her head and stay in bed until Christmas.

"Kim?"

She waited for five seconds before she turned her head. She was blushing to the root of her hair and if the fact that Tommy seemed to be playing dumb was supposed to make her feel better, it wasn't working.

"About tomorrow, it's still on, right?"

_What? What'd happen tomorrow? _

Seeing her blank expression, he filled in, "You know, you sort of promised Erick and Nana you would stay over the night? Barbecuing and camping in our backyard? But if you're not feeling well, it's okay. We can reschedule,"

_Oh shit._ She completely forgot about that. She answered, "Sure," while the truth was, she really wasn't too sure she wanted to spend the night in his house, backyard, tent, whatever.

"Cool," Tommy smiled. "let's go,"

Gosh. What the hell she got herself into?

* * *

**:: At first I wasn't sure if I should make Aaron cut Kim's hair or not, but I thought it would be fun. Lol. Don't worry, things with Aaron won't stop just right there. Thank you for reading and please review, they encourage me to update. No flame please. **

**- Yuuri **


	8. Freak you out

**The Sun, The Moon and The Stars**

**Disclaimer: All Power Rangers related aren't mine.**

**:: I'm so glad I could get the time to write this. The past few weeks had been hell :( Thanks for everyone who had reviewed; it means a lot to me that you're still reading this story. Anyway, I hope you like this one. It's pretty long. Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter Eight: Freak you out**

"Camping? You never told me about that," Trini said, rolling into her side to look at Kim who was sitting on the floor. A magazine lay opened on her lap. "In Tommy's house?"

Kim nodded. She turned the pages without really reading the content. "Yeah, I forgot about that, actually," she stopped to cough and her hand reached the glass on the desk. "Until Tommy mentioned it this afternoon," she said again after drinking half the glass. Fortunately, her voice had slowly come back although the sore throat hadn't completely gone.

"It will be fun," Trini encouraged when seeing Kim's face fall.

"I don't know…," Kim mumbled hesitantly, once again thinking about the kiss she had given Tommy. Her face turned into a deep shade of pink. Her body seemed to be moving on its own. Without warning, she tip toed and pressed her lips against Tommy's. Geez, she surely had flabbergasted Tommy. Kim touched her lips with her fingertips. They had shared one kiss before. They had to. The Oliver's asked her to stay for dinner and from there, everything sort of went out of control.

"_Tell us how you met," Nana Jane said with a bright smile towards the young couple. "We all want to know," _

"_Nana!" Patty Oliver, Tommy's mother patted Nana's hand softly. "Don't make Kim feel uncomfortable or she won't come again next time,"_

"_Oh, please. Don't be a spoil sport," Nana rolled her eyes. "Kimberly is not a person like that. Right, dear?"_

_Kim forced a smile. What else could she say except, "Of course it's okay," _

"_So, how did you two meet?" Erick asked from his place which was beside Tommy's father. There's a spaghetti sauce on his left cheek but he didn't seem to notice and continued eating. "Come on! Tommy won't tell us, he's stubborn that way!" _

_Tommy gave him a sideways glare and glanced at Kim to send a bashful and apologetic grin. "Don't listen to him," _

"_You hush," Nana scolded then turned her full attention back to the petite brunette in pink. Her eyes spoke volumes and when Kim looked around the table, everyone minus Tommy, was looking at her with bright eyes. _

_Kim chuckled inwardly, trying to stall as long as she could. Under the table, her feet tried to kick Tommy's but she stopped at the second attempt. Her leg couldn't reach his and she kept kicking the empty air. Being short had its own disadvantages. Her eyes met Tommy's and he unbelievably said, _

"_Okay, if you're really _that_ curious," Tommy took his glass and had a long swallow. Licking his lips, he started, there's a mischievous glint in his brown eyes. "Kim and I… we've known each other since two years ago when we started high school," _

_Kim raised her eyebrow, interested. That's not a total lie. Except in those two years Tommy seemed to not notice her existence at all. Not that it was all that much matter. She waited for him to continue, wanting to know what he had in mind. _

"_Oh! And you didn't realize that you two actually belonged to each other back then," Nana concluded boldly, making her grandson turned crimson. "Go on," _

"_That's not how it happened," Tommy said. "You can't exactly say that we're friends. I knew her alright, but we didn't talk or that kind of stuff," _

_Oh, wow. He actually was being honest. Kim was amazed. "Tommy didn't even know my name back then," she quipped pointedly. _

"_Thomas!" Nana Jane reacted. "That wasn't too nice of you," _

"_Anyway," Tommy glared playfully at Kim who was grinning from ear to ear. "About six months ago, I saw two of our friends trying to harass Kim. It's not that they were dangerous or something like that, but they kept going even after Kim asked them to go," _

_Kim never knew Tommy was THAT creative. He gained one more brownie point from her._

"_I went over and asked the two guys, Bulk and Skull, to just go away and leave her alone," he said with a smug smile only Kim could see. He enjoyed this so much and that made him look so silly at the same time. Kim held back her snort. Poor Bulk and Skull. _

"_Oh! The white knight on the shining armor," Erick declared cheekily, laughing between words. "How romantic," _

"_Thank you," Tommy retorted shortly. He's certainly in a good mood this evening. "So, I helped Kim and that's the first time I began to notice her. I knew her name was Kim," this emanated laughter from the 'audience'. "And well, I guess that's pretty much what started it," He took his time to look at Nana Jane who seemed to be very happy that her face was practically glowing. _

_There're butterflies in Kim's stomach. That's maybe because of the secret wink he gave her. Tommy looked so sincere. He's a very good actor and that somehow, even though she knew he just made them up, made her feel… special. Like it was what really happened. Meanwhile, Tommy continued his tale. _

"_But that's just that. To make the long story short, it's not until a few weeks later that we started to get to know each other properly," Tommy turned his glance towards Kim and grinned that lopsided grin ever. "I nearly hit her. Thank God I managed to step on the brake at the last second," _

_Quite predictable, the table went crazy. Nana Jane, for one, shrieked and put her hand on her chest. Kim exchanged worried glances with Tommy. Maybe that was too much to take. However, her bewilderment was soon replaced by a mild amusement. _

_Tommy said quickly, "But it turned out alright. More than alright actually," He left the sordid details about the bet he had with Jason and Alex. His voice was warm when he talked and at that second, Kim was flustered and giddy. There's something in his eyes that made her want to turn her face away and duck under the table. _

"Kim, are you still there?" Trini asked and ended up throwing Kim's heartshaped pillow. When the soft stuff hit her head, Kim startled and blinked back. "Nice. You are there,"

"You just don't like to see me happy," Kim protested half-heartedly.

"Happy?" Trini propped her body on her elbow, her dark eyes looking at Kim with interest. "How should I know that you're thinking about your boy toy, Tommy Oliver? I thought you're in trance or something,"

"Very funny," Kim said with a pout. "And who said I was thinking about Tommy?"

"Your face said it all, Sweety," Trini said sympathetically. "You always like that. Like someone in the middle of a, like I've said, trance, everytime you think about him. Quite unusual and scary because I know someone whose face will turn all red, eyes bulging and can't stop moving her hands everytime she thinks about her crush. I think that's pretty normal, considering how you act everytime that boy get into your head,"

"Shut up,"

**The Oliver Residence**

**Saturday—7.45 P.M**

Kim climbed down the car and waited until her mom drove away. For a full minute, she just stood there, on the pavement and did nothing. She couldn't believe that this day was finally come. It wasn't that she didn't want to have a sleepover in Tommy's house, it just felt weird.

She hadn't forgotten about the kiss she had given him. It just sort of happened. He was standing there, all handsome and charming _(Duh!),_ and after everything was cleared between them, she felt like tons of bricks have being lifted from her shoulders that she got the sudden urge to kiss him. It was quick and her heart was hammering inside her chest so loudly that she couldn't even remember how it was; the kiss.

She couldn't meet his eyes after that happened. Good thing he didn't ask what the kiss was all about or she wouldn't know how to answer him. She was not as _creative_ as he was.

As Kim tried to erase the memory of the embarrassing moment from her head, she walked towards the front door, taking her time. There's no need to rush. She didn't want to appear too...what? Eager? Nope, definitely not eager. She'd rather stay home and study for the French test on Monday.

Kim pressed at the doorbell and waited anxiously. It should be okay. She'd done countless sleepover in the boys' house. Oh, how she wished Billy or Zack were here! _Come on, Kim…It's not a big deal._ If it's not, then why did she feel like she's going to be sick and wanted nothing more than to turn around and run back home?

The door in front of her swang open and a smiling Nana Jane standing before her eyes. The old woman quickly grabbed Kim's hand and ushered her in. "Kimberly honey, glad you can make it. Are you feeling better? Tommy said that you had a cold. You shouldn't be coming if you're not feeling well,"

"It's okay now," Kim reassured her. Her voice was still a little bit croaky when she spoke. Nana Jane's eyes were not focused on her, but to something behind her and from the sparkle shining from them, Kim got a pretty good guess what or who that might be.

She swallowed hard. She was not ready for this.

"Oh, look who's here!" Nana said happily and like it or not, Kim had to face her grandkid because Nana practically turned her around. There he was, standing oh-so-handsome with that grin. Why did he always grin _that_ grin? For some odd reasons, it made her toes curl everytime he flashed her that smile.

With a gentle shove, Nana pushed the petite girl forwards and just stood there, obviously waiting for something. Kim and Tommy traded bashful glances; they did that awful lot lately. After another second, Tommy leaned down and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. When they parted, Nana seemed to be very satisfed.

"Great. Now I'll leave you two and I'll be waiting in the backyard,"

Kim watched as the older woman walked away. She turned to Tommy and lack of anything else to say, smiled. This began to get ridiculous. It wasn't supposed to be this way. She knew that there's only one explanation: she started to fall for him. And it wasn't right. She _mustn't_. One heartbroken was enough and she didn't wish for another. Especially not coming from Tommy.

"So, you're here,"

"I'm here," Kim's swinging her arms on her sides and looked around. "So, are Jason and Alex coming too?"

"They'll try but I'm afraid not. They haven't finished their science project, which is something that doesn't surprise me," At Kim incredulous look he quickly said, "I finished mine, thank you," Kim giggled and nodded her head. "You may think whatever you want. It's a free country,"

"I didn't say anything," Kim pointed out, feeling more relax than she had been ten minutes ago when her mother dropped her off. Tommy smiled but there's something in his eyes. Kim could easily tell that something must be bugging him. Her soft brown eyes searched his chocolate ones and she asked softly, "Is there anything you want to tell me?"

"Actually-," Tommy's sentence was cut when his mother shouted from the backyard. He groaned. "Just put your bags on the living room or you can bring them straight to the back, we've set the tents up. Erick is so excited about tonight,"

Good thing, Kim thought, while she was feeling so uptight about tonight. "Okay," With that Tommy left and she wandered to the kitchen. She had been quite familiar with the Oliver's. It felt so nice to be around here. It offered something that her own home couldn't give her. Warmth, a sense of security… Her mother had to work until midnight sometimes and Kim hated to be alone. Trini would stay with her every once in a while, but it's still different.

There're times when she would hope she had a sister or brother that she wouldn't feel too lonely. Actually, it's better if the divorce never happened. She wanted to go back to the time before the nightmare started. Kim sighed. Wistful thinking.

She opened the fridge and took a can of coke. Her thoughts were in a whirl and she barely heard the doorbell. The second rang startled her and she moved to the front door, silently wondering who that might be. Probably Jason and Alex got lucky enough and managed to come. She personally hoped they could make it. It would feel too weird to be alone with the Oliver's.

Kim took a gulp of her drink and in the same time unlocked the door. When she swang it open, she nearly choked and ended up coughing like crazy. She put the can on the table near the door and covered her mouth with her hand.

"Gosh, Kim. I thought you're going to spit it on me," Aaron put his hand on her back. "You okay?"

Kim looked through the strand of falling hair across her face and blinked to make sure it was really Aaron who was standing right next to her and patting her back. Her anger from the day before quickly resurfaced. She still hadn't forgiven him yet for cutting her hair. What a total jerk!

"Aaron?" She stammered out his name. "What are you doing here?" Kim demanded once her cough stopped. Aaron's eyebrow rose at her question and Kim suddenly got a bad feeling. Really bad feeling.

"Tommy hasn't told you?"

"Tell me what?" Something that was disturbing Tommy must be this. Aaron would come and join the party. Geez, he should tell her sooner!

Before Aaron answered, Erick had run from out of nowhere and leaped to him. The eight year old nearly tackled him down with his enthusiasm. Kim's eyes widened in pure horror.

"Aaron! I thought you wouldn't come," Erick said eagerly and he tugged at the older boy's hand. "Kim, this is Aaron, Tommy's friend and my friend. He just got back from San Diego,"

Welcome to your nightmare, Kimmie…

* * *

"I'm really sorry, Kim," Tommy said for the seventh time that night. Now he was standing beside her, a plate of half eaten hotdog in his hand. He ended up putting it on the table and turned his full attention to the brunette. "I should tell you that he's coming. I just found out this afternoon actually. Erick was the one who asked him to come," 

Kim threw the empty can to the plastic bag they used as a trash bin. "It's okay. I just overreacted," Her eyes flew to Aaron and Erick who seemed to be having a really good time at the other side of the yard. Nana Jane was talking with Tommy's mother and Erick's while Mr. Oliver was nowhere to be seen. Her eyes narrowed. She never knew that Aaron could actually interact with little kids like a normal person. She used to think that he was too impatient.

There're two tents; the dark red tent and the blue one. It's not like Tommy and she would share a tent, so it must be one for Erick and her. As for Tommy… "Does he stay for dinner or will he…,"

Tommy nodded, confirming her fear. Okay. Now it officially was a nightmare. She should've followed her early instinct to just not come here. Looks what happen now!

"It's cool. I mean, I won't be lying to you. I still dislike him. A lot. But maybe this won't be so bad after all. And I really should stop acting like a kid. I mean, it happened two years ago for God's sake. I have to let it go,"

"You know what," Tommy out of the blue said, his face brightened. He swiftly changed the topic to a less distressing one. "I think Jason had told you this, but just in case he hadn't, my birthday is on 29th February," He stopped and waiting for her to react.

Kim's mouth opened slightly. Her eyes blinked in astonishment. "Wait. _29_th February?" She couldn't help but bursted out laughing. "Oh, Tommy. Poor you! You can't even celebrate it this year. You've got to celebrate it like, every four years!"

"I know," He smiled shyly.

"Why do you look so pleased about it?" Kim asked, eyeing his face. His handsome feature was red with excitement. "If I were you, I'd be so bumped up because I totally love my birthday,"

"I was thinking," Tommy looked nervous all of a sudden, his hand coming up to rub the back of his neck. "Will you go out with me that day? I mean, on the first of March, that is,"

See Kimberly? There's finally one good thing happened today. Life wasn't as cruel as you'd thought.

"You mean like a date?"

"You could say so," he shrugged his broad shoulders.

Kim never tried to find out about Tommy's little facts before. When his birthday was was one of them. She knew a couple of things but lately she felt it'd be better if she didn't involve herself too far.

She was afraid that the more she knew about him, the harder it would be not to like him.

"I don't know," She answered, her voice wavering. She desperately wanted to, but not sure if it was the right thing to do. "I think I have a gymnastic meeting on that date,"

"Oh, it's okay," Tommy replied after a while, trying to hide his disappointment. He looked down at her through his long lashes. "Just think about it, okay? And tell me if you've changed your mind,"

"Sure,"

**.:11. 13 P.M:.**

"_But maybe this won't be so bad after all…"_

The hell it wouldn't, Kim thought miserably as she tried to dampen the sound of the thunder striking right above her head.

Beside her, Erick was sleeping peacefully, not feeling bothered by the sudden changed of weather at the slightest. It had started raining since two hours ago and when she suggested them to move the camping inside her house, Erick regarded her with a look that said, 'Don't be silly' and he said the rain made things get more interesting. It would feel like they're doing camping in a real jungle.

Kim loathed thunder as much as she detest Aaron, probably more. This might sound stupid, but it could make her scream like a little girl. Zack always teased her about her phobia but well, he just didn't know. Like it hadn't been bad enough, the sound of the rain hitting the tent doubled the intensity and she wanted nothing more than to be sleeping in her own bed right now. Or at least not out in the open like _this_.

Kimberly put her hands over her ears but it didn't help a bit. The chance for her to get some sleep tonight was slim, she's sure of it.

'_Make it stop…make it stop…'_ She softly chanted over and over again.

Instead of stopping, a loud thunder struck and shoke the ground. Kim quickly buried her head in the pillow. She bit her lips hard to prevent her from shouting out loud.

This was dangerous, right? Wasn't it dangerous to stay here while the lightning could strike you anytime? It's a near death experience!

Another earthshattering lightning struck and Kim shot up. She couldn't take it anymore.

Kim silently slipped off the sleeping bag and she grabbed her jacket. She knew she shouldn't leave Erick all alone there, but all thoughts were swept away once the lightning struck once again, the light nearly blinded her eyes.

She kneeled down and undone the zipper swiftly. The cold wind hit her face mercilessly and her eyes automatically closed on their own accords. Kim pulled the jacket tighter around her and she pulled her hood on. She got up, walked outside and zipped it back.

She run through the rain, nearly slipped once or twice on the slippery ground. She hurriedly climbed up the stairs and exhaled in relief once she was safe under the roof. She peered down to see her pajamas pants were rather muddy. Kim groaned. Very clever. Why did she have to bring this one? It's her favorite.

Looking at the sky, it was dark with no sign the rain would stop soon. Kim threw a guilty look towards her tent. It looked so fragile. Would it survive this rain? She deserved to die, deserting Erick like that, but she just had to.

There's a loud rumble and the lighting struck again, making Kim jump and let out a yelp. She turned around fast and moved to the door, hoping it wasn't locked. And thank God, it wasn't.

**.:01.34 A.M:.**

Tommy pushed the handle open. He had been awake for a while and the fierce lighting reminded him of one thing that he didn't remember until tonight.

"_I hate lightning. It creeps me out, really,"_ He recalled something Kim admitted once upon a time. He was not that forgetful.

It's not until he was ready to check on Kim that he realized that Aaron was missing. His sleeping bag was cold so it seemed like he had gone for a while. Yeah, he ended up sharing the tent with him. It's not too bad. They managed to get into a conversation without killing each other. He got the feeling that his long time friend had changed. Could he start to trust Aaron again and rebuild their friendship again? Boy, did he surprise when Erick told him about Aaron joining the camping. Aaron and his nephew had a certain bond that Tommy couldn't understand. Erick thought so highly of him and it crushed him when Aaron moved without informing him first.

He walked to Kim's tent which located about three meters from his and called for her. He had to shout because of the wind and when he got no responses after two minutes, he made an attempt to open the tent. It surprised him when there's only one sleeping figure there.

Where's Kimberly? He quickly zipped it up again so the water wouldn't get inside. He was nearly soaked from head to toe and he was confused as hell.

Tommy stepped inside the house, mentally preparing himself for whatever coming tomorrow once his mother saw her carpet was drenched and dirty. _It won't be pretty._

His trained eyes looked around the living room and he was taken aback by the display in front of his eyes. He rubbed his eyes to make sure his eyes weren't playing any tricks on him.

Laying on the sofa _--Mom would be soo pissed!--,_ were Kim _and_ Aaron. Together. She had her head on his lap and their eyes were closed.

_What the hell..._

* * *

**:: Uh oh... Do I smell trouble here? Thank you for reading and please don't forget to review. No flame please, thanks. **

**- Yuuri**


	9. Ain't true to yourself

**The Sun, the Moon and The Stars**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything.**

**:: Oh yay! Weekend! I really need that. I'd managed to steal time here and there to finish this chapter. Thanks to everyone who had reviewed and thanks to Chaikakhan for pointing out the misquotation in chapter two. I fixed it. This is the ninth chapter and I hope you like this one.**

* * *

**Chapter nine: Ain't true to yourself**

_Kim stirred, resting her head more comfortably against the hard-soft pillow beneath her head. Her hand wiped at her eyes absently and her eyes fluttered open. Her vision was still a little bit blurry so it took her a full five seconds to realize where she had been laying at. Kim sat up almost instantly. _

_Oh God! _

_Kim chewed her lips so hard that she thought it would bleed. She didn't dare to turn around, afraid of what she'd see. Her head lifted and she could see the tents on the Oliver's backyard. Then her doe eyes moved west to check the grandfather clock at the corner. 03.39 a.m. _

_Kim simply couldn't believe she had fallen asleep on Aaron. AARON for pity's sake! Sure, they probably had cleared the air between them, but it didn't mean that she had completely forgotten and forgiven him for what he did to her. She raised her hand to her chest, feeling it thump against her palm. She was breathing hard like she had been doing thirty five backflips nonstop. _

_Slowly, she braved herself to turn around and he was there, her eyes didn't play funny tricks on her. She really WAS sleeping on his lap. Carefully as not to wake the him, Kim stood up and just watched his face. _

_He looked really cute, sleeping with his mouth slightly opened. His hand lay limply on his sides and his head rested back against the sofa. He had a tight shirt on so she could see well how his body had developed since the last time she saw him. _

_Kimberly blushed. She couldn't help it. It was useless to deny the fact that Aaron Smith was good looking. Sure, that's the first factor that had attracted her to him. _

_If she paid closer attention, Aaron kind of looked like Tommy. Tommy was more beautiful, with those long lashes that dusted his cheeks and that sexy long hair (did she just say_ sexy_?) while Aaron was… Aaron. His face was more heartshaped and the thin scar on his right temple sending a shudder to her spine._

_God, this was so confusing. _

_Her old feeling couldn't be coming back, right? It's just impossible. She had Tommy now. Well, not exactly HAD him, because she was completely oblivious about his feeling towards her, though she honestly hoped that his date invitation hinting to something. But then again, Tommy's standard was someone like Samantha King. True, she wasn't tall and blonde and everything, but Sam was really pretty. Kim stood no chance. _

_And if she didn't want to get hurt again in the end, it'd be better for her if she kept her distance. _

Who said that liking Aaron wouldn't hurt you in the end?_ A little voice interrupted. _

_No. Kim thought, her jaw was set. Either Tommy or Aaron, they're BOTH were just friends. The strange feelings inside her stomach… it's probably because they're too handsome and mind her, it's pretty normal for a girl to be flustered in front of good looking guys._

_Kim completely realized how stupid her reason sounded, but if it could make her feel better, which it did, she would hold on to that. _

_She was shocked to find Aaron inside the house, instead with Tommy in their tents. Funny, but thinking about them sharing a tent made her want to laugh. _

**_.:A few hours prior_**

"_Oh my GOD!" Kim yelped and jumped when an invisible hand tapped her shoulder lightly. Her mouth was quickly clamped shut by that hand. Her first instict was to bite it off, but she was turned and Aaron released his hand. _

"_Ssst! You don't want to wake the house, do you?" He hissed, putting a lone finger on his lips. Water dripped down the side of his face and Kim notice that his shirt was still damp, as well as his hair. _

"_What are you doing here?" It's difficult for Kim not to raise her voice. She took off her jacket and put it on the counter. _

_Even in the dark, Aaron's eyes seemed to be shining. His lips curled into a quirky grin. "Isn't that supposed to be my question?" _

_Of course, she couldn't tell him that she was afraid to death of lightning, now could she? That would totally humiliate herself. She shrugged and tried to answer as cooly as she could. "I need to go to the toilet," _

"_Oh, and here I thought your tent was leaking or maybe the thunder is far too much to take," Aaron smirked and received a glare from the brunette. He moved to stand before the wide glass window, watching the rain pouring harder. "I'm here for the same reason," He explained and walked around and sat on the sofa. "Besides, your boyfriend snores," _

'_What boyfriend' nearly slipped her lips, but she's able to halt her tongue at the last second. "Okay, so you left Tommy all alone," _

"_Don't look at me like that," Aaron chided her. "Your boyfriend is a big guy," For some odd reasons, Kim felt uncomfortable everytime he said 'her boyfriend' over and over again. "Unlike an eight year old you abandoned,"_

_Kim frowned. This guy was impossible. _

"_Anyway, now that you are here, we need to talk," _

"_Talking about what?" Kim asked although she had a pretty good guess what the topic might be. _

"_I'm sorry about what happened two years ago," Aaron stated straightforwardly, his face remained calm. Kim felt her heart jump one beat. He was apologizing to her! What's wrong with the world today? Aaron she knew would never, ever admit that he was wrong. But now he said he was sorry. For the second time. The first one was to Tommy the other day._

"_I realized that what I'd done probably hurt you really bad," He continued with no small amount of confidence. Kim almost growled. He looked like he was pleased to be able to hurt her 'really bad'. "I shouldn't have done that. To you or to anyone," _

_Anyone? Was that mean she's not the only one? Oh, he deserved to be burnt on a stake! _

"_Why are you apologizing now? You seemed to not care a little bit two years ago," Kim questioned and walked closer to sit on the other end of the sofa. "Why now?" _

"_Better be late than never, right?" Aaron replied, stretching his legs and rested them on the table. "Just say that within the past two years, I've changed," _

_Kim was quiet. Did she really have to forgive him just like that? After two years of hatred, she would forgive him with a simple 'I'm sorry'? She studied his face intently, not knowing whether she had to believe him or not._

"_Thing with Jen and Andy probably was the biggest factor that made me realize," Aaron said quietly, breaking the silence. The only sound around them was the sound of the rain serenaded the conversation. The lightning brightened the living room for a second but Kim didn't notice. She was too stunned of what Aaron'd said. She knew that Aaron was an orphan and Jen and Andy were his legal guardians. From the words spreading around the school, they didn't treat him like they're supposed to. _

"_I don't mean to sound so whiny, but I hate them," His face kept emotionless though his hand clenched tightly. "It's not that I don't thank them for having me for years, but they're just horrible," He shot Kim a tired grin. "Just say that I don't want to make people miserable. I know how my attitude back then," _

_For Kim, it seemed like Aaron was talking to himself. It confused her but she didn't say anything. She waited for him to continue, but it's unlikely he would go with details. She couldn't say much since Aaron spoke so vaguely, but she could assume that whatever happened between him and his foster parents was not pretty. _

"_Didn't you say you want to go to pee?" Aaron broke the silence, his voice was back to normal and without thinking, Kim lifted the cushion and threw it to him. _

Kim hugged her knees to her chest, blinking back the hot tears threatened to break free. The whole camping idea was a mistake so it didn't surprise her that much when it ended just like she'd feared it would be- a mess.

Her red, fluffy eyes glanced at the rain hitting the window. It had been raining since yesterday. Everything was gloomy, just like how she felt right now.

Not long after she woke up for the second time last night, she made a split decision to go back to her tent, ignoring the rain _and_ the ferocious lightning, partly because she couldn't stand seeing Aaron after what had happened. _After she fell asleep on his lap._ Alas, she couldn't sleep and ended up laying in her sleeping bag and watched Erick sleeping soundly. How she envied him…

One minute they were talking and the next minute she was snoring on his lap. She didn't do it voluntarily, she's sure of that. Did Aaron set everything up?

_Kim was putting her towel inside her bag when she saw Tommy standing nearby. His expression was hard to read, which was not unusual, but still. She smiled. "Hey, Tommy," _

_The rest of the families were enjoying breakfast while Aaron had excused himself first thing in the morning. Thankfully, he didn't ask her anything about last night. Well, he slept like a log so he probably didn't even realize the extra weight laying on his lap. _

"_Kim," The tall martial artist erased their distance in two long strides. He looked thoughtful for a second and then he said, "I know that you used to have a certain feeling for Aaron," _

_Kim blinked, her smile diminished in under a second and a growing panic bubbled inside her. "What do you mean?" She asked nervously. _

"_I think you perfectly know what I mean," Tommy almost snapped. _

"_Excuse me?" Her eyes widened considerably, surprised at his unusual manner._

"_I just ask you to be careful," Tommy stated sternly. "Last night was too close. You could get caught. Nana could come down to check on us and saw you two. Didn't you think about it?" _

_Oh. So this was about THAT. Tommy saw them. _

"_That's so selfish of you, Kim," he stared down at her. _

"_Wait. What?_ _Selfish?" Kim retorted back. "You said _I _was selfish? If I were selfish, Tommy, I won't be here standing in your living room, pretending like we are a happy couple just to please your grandmother," _

"_SSST!" Tommy quickly looked around to make sure noone was near. Then, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her to the closet near the stairs. There wasn't much space so they had to stand close. Tommy clicked the lamp switch on. His warm breath washed over her face. Normally, it would make her toes curl and butterflies in her stomach soaring high, but now she was too angry to think about any of that. "Are you crazy?" _

"_Come on, Tommy. You're not being fair here," She hissed impatiently. Even in the dim light she could see Tommy's eyes blazing. The boy's upset. For what? "You called me selfish. Then let me ask you a question. If you saw us, why didn't you wake me? Now who's stupid?" _

"_I-," _

"_I don't understand, Tommy," Kim said again, her voice was almost sad. "This isn't like you,"_

"_I just want you not to be so careless next time," He said between greeted teeth. _

"_Next time? What do you mean 'next time'? Aaron and I, we're not-,"_

_Tommy face inched closer to hers, their noses almost touched. For a second that felt like hours, Kim thought he's going to kiss her. "I don't care about whatever you have with Aaron. Okay, so you like him. I'm cool about that. We're just pretending after all," His choise of words echoed hers minutes ago. _

"_Damn right we are," Kim mumbled._

"_I don't know how to say this but…," Tommy sighed hard and leaned back against the wall. "Aaron hates me, Kim,"_

"_Hat_ed_," Kim pointed out. "He doesn't hate you. If he hates you he won't be here, staying the night in your house," _

"_He did that just because Erick asked him to," _

_Kim shook her head, her eyes watching Tommy closely. "You're acting really weird, Tommy. First you said I was acting selfish, now you said Aaron hated you. What's the matter with you?" She asked desperately, refraining herself from smacking his head good._

"_I don't want he use you against me," Tommy grasped her shoulders. "He knows you used to like him and now you're my girlfriend. Aaron would do anything to get back at me," his eyes were almost pleaded at her, wishing she could get his meaning._

_Kim was too furious to register the fact that Tommy had called her 'his girlfriend'. She tried to pull back from his grip. Not a very easy task, seeing how small the closet was. "How could you say that? He's your friend! Now who's being selfish? You just want to protect yourself!" _

"_I don't want him to hurt you, damn it," Kim flinched at the rough tone of his voice. Then Tommy continued in his usual warm voice. "I know you, Kim. I know how his doing two years ago had affected you," _

_Kim lifted her gaze to meet his dark eyes. He was deadly serious. Hell, who he was kidding? She was too. "You know what, Tommy? You don't know me. So please don't talk like you do," _

_The pain reflected from those chocolate eyes pained her all the more. Without casting another glance, Kim left. _

She was undoubtedly defending Aaron. Why she had to do that? It was _Tommy_. The fight shouldn't have taken place at all. Kim took another tissue paper from the nightstand and blew her nose. After saying goodbye to the Oliver's, Kim went straight home and, sadly, cried herself out. She didn't know why she did, after all _they were just pretending._

She began to hate those words.

Kim wanted, no, needed to talk to someone. She had to let this out. She was not the type of person who could save her thoughts to herself. She couldn't get a hold on Trini, who's probably going out with her mother, and somehow her hand seemed to be moving on its own. Picking up the phone, she took her notebook from the drawer and looked through a list of numbers. Who knew about Tommy better than the person she's about to call now?

Kim rolled to her side, supporting herself on one elbow. After the fourth ring, someone picked up the phone.

"_Hello, Scott Residence. Jason's speaking,"_

"Jason?"

"_Who is this…whoa, Kimberly?" _Tommy's bestfriend asked, surprised. She had no problems talking to Alex, and especially with his tons of experiences with girls, talking to him was probably what she should do. But for her it looked like Jason and Tommy were closer, and although she didn't know why, it was much easier for her to talk to Jason.

"Yeah, it's me," Kim drew in a long breath. Her voice was still a bit croaky for having cried for almost an hour. It's unlikely Jason wouldn't notice it.

"_What happened?"_ He asked with a laugh. _"Sorry, it's just, you're calling out of the blue. Not that I'm complaining. Oh well, you know what I mean,"_

"I understand," Now that she had called him, she couldn't just hang up. Then again, if she wanted to talk and asked for advice, Jason was the one who could help her. "I..,"

"_You okay?"_ Jason asked hesitantly.

Kim sniffled but the tears had stopped flowing. She blew a strand of hair from her eyes. "Yes, no, I don't know. It's… Are you busy?"

"_Not really. I just finished washing my Dad's car. What's up?" _

"It's about Tommy…," Kim said slowly, thinking again and again whether calling Jason was right.

"_What about him?" _

What should she tell him? Honestly, she herself didn't know what had happened as well. Were they fighting? Seemed like it. Was she supposed to tell Jason everything? Did she trust him enough? How she's going to explain about Aaron? Did Tommy tell Jason about the 'accident' two years ago? So many questions to answer.

Once Kim opened her mouth, she found herself couldn't stop talking. She told Jason the whole story since the very beginning until today. Once Kim finished, she waited for Jason to say something. And when he did, Kim released the breathe she didn't know she had been holding.

"_Okay, I think he's a bit out of line,"_ Jason said soberly. _"But I've to say he probably had a point there. I'm not saying who's right or wrong, and I'm definitely not taking Tommy's side, but he just asked you to be more careful," _

"Tommy practically told me to stay away from him," Kim grumbled. "He thinks Aaron is trying to seduce me or something like that just to get back at him. Isn't that crazy? And _Aaron has changed_," Kim insisted with more persistence in her voice.

"_Maybe. But due to some…,"_ Jason sounded hesitant for a brief moment_. "complications, Aaron used to develop a certain abhorrence towards Tommy. Guess you knew about it already?"_

Kim rolled her eyes in frustation. "I know," Kim mumbled, rising to her feet and started pacing around. "How could I not with everyone seem to be thinking the same thing?"

"_I'll talk to him if you want,"_ Jason said after sometime. Then he dropped another bomshell into her arms. _"Then again, I'm pretty sure that his attitude came out of his jealousy," _

W-what? Did he just say… jealousy??

**.:Kimberly:.**

**Twenty minutes later**

'_What do you mean by that?' Kim heard herself saying, her voice was hoarse. Her brain was still trying to process the… non-sense crap Jason'd told her. 'You said he was jealous of Aaron? How could he be jealous? You perfectly know Tommy and I are just-,'_

'_Kimberly, you're babbling,' Jason sighed. _

'_No, I'm not,' Kim said tightly. _

'_I guess you understand what I'm talking about. Come on, I thought girls were supposed to be sensitive about this thing,' _

'_What thing?' Kim demanded sharply, feeling her heart speeding up. Sure she knew what Jason meant, but did she want, no, dare enough to believe it? _

When she turned to Tommy's street, Kim began to slow her steps until she stopped dead on her track. Was this a right thing to do? And how come she let Jason talk her to go see Tommy after their sort of fight?

But there she was, standing a few meters from Tommy's house and had no idea of what she would do next. Apologizing to him? Why should she when it's supposed to be the other way around?

Maybe she'd better turn back and go home before she regretted her decision to come here. _Jason was so dead! _

'_Knowing my bro,' Jason said. 'You have hurt his feeling by saying those last lines to him,' _

_Kim knew he was bluffing but now that she had come to think about it, what she said to Tommy was a bit heartless. But it's true. Who the hell he thought he was that he could tell her what to do? 'Jason,' _

'_I know you're feeling guilty,' Jason went on with satisfaction in his voice. 'God, I never thought I'd be playing cupid for both of you,' _

'_Jason!'_

'_That's what you get for trying to trick me and Alex at the first place.'_

Kim nearly ducked when she saw Tommy standing in his front porch, hands shoved deep inside his pocket. Since he didn't know she was coming over, he couldn't be waiting for her. Except Jason called him and-

"TOMMY!"

Her eyes quickly averted to the tall blonde coming out of the car stopped in his driveway. Kim felt a knot form in her stomach. She watched as the blonde run towards Tommy, who was now smiling widely with no trace of sadness, as Jason had pointed out would be, on his face.

When the girl lunged forward and practically leaped into his opened arms, Kim was ready to shoot herself. She sneered. _Oh yeah, I totally broke his heart_, she thought sarcatically.

Without another thought, Kim turned around and took her leave. She knew coming here was a mistake. A _B-I-G_ mistake to spell it out loud.

That's why she better kept her feelings to Tommy to 'just friends'. And definitely _No_ to the date he'd asked her. End of the story.

* * *

**:: Okay… Things got more intense between Tommy and Kim and meanwhile, there's a girl ready to put more drama... or not? Maybe some of you want to kill Aaron, but he's needed for the story! _grin_ Nine chapters. I really hoped this wouldn't be long, but unfortunately I have a tendency to write a chapter longer than I would've liked. I don't know how long this story gonna be, I'll try to keep it short. Anyway, thank you for reading and review please. No flame though. Thanks.**

**- Yuuri**


	10. Two times two equals four

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer:**** Not mine, obviously.**

**:: I just realized that I had abandoned this story for quiet some time. I'm sorry but life has been really crazy and demanding. Thanks to those who had reviewed and still reading this story. Enjoy. **

* * *

**Chapter Ten: Two times two equals four**

Kim grabbed the towel around her neck and wiped the light sheen of sweat on her face. Catching Jason's mascular form standing across the room, she quickly turned her face away. Ever since the phone call, she hadn't talked to him about the whole Tommy problems thing. It was too frustating and she had more important issues to think about. Like the geometry test this afternoon that she's sured wouldn't impress anyone, especially Billy who had been tutoring her since a few weeks ago.

Yesterday was a pretty _colorful_ day to say the least; she never cried, yelled, felt upset, dissapointed and hurt and, this going to sound silly, _betrayed_ all in one day. Definitely a date to remember. Despite everything, Tommy hadn't tried to contact her yet; not that she hoped he would. Well, maybe she did, but she wouldn't admit it that easily, would she?

Thinking about Jason, she guessed it's pretty obvious for him that whatever happened last night didn't turn out as how he had predicted it would. She had to give him credit for not asking anything about his bro. She's still 'mentally unstable' and she didn't think she could handle thinking about Tommy, let alone talking about him.

If being in love felt like this, she'd better not fall in love at all. Why did regrets always come late?

"Hey, Ernie, can you give me a strawberry smoothie, please?" Kim said tiredly.

"Sure," The big, amiable man dressed in a bright red t-shirt replied with a sympathectic smile. He had seen her moments and today was not one of them.

"Hard day?"

Kim turned her head and felt her heart jump one beat. She was too upset that she didn't take notice of the young man sitting two chairs beside her. She smiled lightly, thinking at the nonsensical question Aaron'd asked. "Well, I supposed you saw me ungracefully almost landing on my face,"

Aaron grinned. His lips curled into one of those rare smiles of him but his eyes remained cold and distant. "I've seen worse,"

The statement made Kim lift her eyebrows but before she could ask what he meant, Ernie had put the tall glass of smoothie in front of her. "Enjoy, Kim. It's on the house,"

"Thanks, Ernie," Kim shot a bright smile his way.

"Kim, about what I said to you," Aaron said after Ernie walked away; he looked bashful all of a sudden. He ruffled his dark colored hair. "I'll appreciate it if you keep it to yourself,"

"Which part?" Kim asked although she knew what he meant and from the smirk appeared over his face, she knew he also realized what she's doing right now.

"Thanks," Aaron nodded. "Though I completely understand if you told Tommy," It's a good thing that he's paying full intention to his straw or else he'd see the girl beside him tense. "I mean, he's your boyfriend,"

"He's your friend too," Kim said softly, watching Aaron closely. She wouldn't tell Tommy, of course. Not only he _wasn't_ her boyfriend; even if he was, there're some things that better be kept untold. Or in this case, Aaron should be the one who told Tommy. Aaron only shrugged.

The gymnast slipped off her chair, bringing her smoothie with her. "If you'll excuse me, I have tons of homework to finish. Better start now,"

"Cool,"

Kim walked passed him and was surprised when Aaron suddenly grabbed her arm. She almost lost her balance and nearly spilled the smoothie all over her leotard. "Kim, I was-,"

"What-," Whatever she's about to say had to stay unspoken. The sight that unexpectedly greeted her eyes halted her tongue at the last second. Her eyes locked with Aaron's for a brief moment and she realized he hadn't release his grip on her arm.

"Tommy! What a coincidence," Aaron said to the two people walking towards them. Tommy seemed to be uncomfortable, wonder what the case was… Aaron smirked. "Well, well, isn't this the lovely Miss Viola?"

That snapped Kim's attention. Now she was surprised. Aaron knew _her_? _The lovely Miss Viola_? Could this be more 'interesting' than it already had? Geez! Tried as hard as she might, Kim didn't think she could act cool enough in front of Tommy and his friend.

"Kim," Tommy said rather awkwardly.

"Hey," She replied. There's no need to pretend like yesterday's fiasco didn't take place. True, she might find him as someone she liked more than just friend, but at the moment, she wanted to slap that face so much it hurt.

"Vi, this is Kimberly," Tommy introduced the blonde to the short brunette and watched as the two girls shoke hands. "And Kim, this is Viola,"

"Vi is Tommy's cousin. She's two years younger than you're," Aaron continued, giving Vi a high five. Kim could almost breathe normally again. His cousin. "Though they're not related by blood. His uncle Jim married Viola's mother. She's half Italian,"

"Okay, thanks for the newsflash," Viola chuckled, putting her hand on her hip. "Hi, Kim, nice to meet you and you, bastard, what are you doing here?" She asked Aaron with a playful poke.

"I knew that you're going to come, so I decided to move back here," Aaron reasoned with a grin.

Kim watched the interaction between the old friends, all the while feeling more misplaced than ever. The fact that Tommy hadn't said anything to her beside 'Kim' was enough to make her want to run back home. What she said to him in his closet was rather harsh. It's still ringing in her ears and refused to leave her mind at peace.

Viola was only a cousin. Even if she was his cousin by marriage, she's still a cousin. Right?

Kim took some time to look at the newbie. Now that Kim had seen her in a short distance, Viola did look younger. Kim was too furious and embarrassed yesterday to pay any attention. She's tall and athletic. Kim couldn't say that Viola was pretty, but there's something in her that could draw people to her. She seemed nice. Maybe there's no reason for Kim to think badly about this cousin.

"Tommy? Can I talk to you for a moment?" Kim questioned her white shirted 'boyfriend', her doe eyes looking up at him nervously.

"Yeah, maybe that's a good idea,"

"Kim is Tommy's new girl," Aaron declared as if he just realized that he had missed the most important information and Kim almost cringed at the yelp coming from Viola. Okay… maybe _now_ was the right moment to think that Vi wasn't only a cousin.

A frown marred Tommy's feature. Whoever heard what Aaron said would get the impression that he changed girlfriend every once in a while and by chance, Kimberly was his girl for this month. He gave his long time buddy a look that spoke volume. Furthermore, he hadn't exactly told Viola about his new relationship—don't care whether it's true or fake—and didn't know how she would take it.

Just put it this way, Viola had developed a certain fondness for him since she was a child and the vow they once made didn't help matter any.

The girl in the brown long sleeved shirt swirled around quickly and faced Tommy. She kept silence though her eyes were clearly demanding for some explanations. "She is?" She asked when he didn't make a move.

"Viola!" Jason's voice boomed across the room and Tommy had to let out a deep breath of relief. In no time, Jason was standing between Tommy and Viola, a not so genuine wide smile blossomed on his face. "What are you doing here? I thought you're still in China. Or was it Taiwan? No? Ack, my bad, I think it's either Japan or India, then?"

If it was possible, Tommy'd willingly kiss Jason for the save. He had to swallow his smile upon seeing Kim's half confused half amazed expression. He silently tugged at her wrist and pulled her closer. "Come on,"

--

Both Kimberly and Tommy just sat there in a full uncomfortable silence. Somebody should start to say something and after another thought, Tommy began by saying what she deserved to hear.

"Look, Kim, I'm sorry,"

"I'm sorry too," Kim said, feeling the guilt kicking back as the words poured out of her lips. "I shouldn't have said all those things to you. I mean, you're just trying to be careful," She tried to talk as casually as possible. Boy, was it hard. The image of the blonde inside the Youth Center still clouded her mind. Jealousy was practically an aura glowing around Viola. If only she knew… Kim sighed. "So… She's your cousin, huh? Nice girl,"

Tommy nodded, leaning back against the chair and enjoyed the evening breeze cooling his warm skin.

"Does she know about… us?" She nearly laughed. Was there even an 'us'?

His eyes opened at the mention of their unreal relationship. He regarded her with a short glance and answered, "She doesn't," Tommy scratched his chin, thinking how he would tell Kim. "Actually, I was thinking if I should talk to you first. But we don't have to though; she only stays for the weekend. She heard about Nana's condition and wanted to see her,"

"Jane didn't tell her?" Kim was mildly surprised.

"They only talked for like ten minutes yesterday," Tommy answered, tilting his head to look at her face. "So no,"

"Looks like she and Aaron are close,"

Tommy smiled. "Yeah, they met when Viola visited in the summer break. That happened before Aaron moved from Cali. They're both crazy so it didn't suprise me that much when they became friends,"

"She likes you," Once the words escaped her lips, Kim felt the air circulation around her stop. Why did she have to say that?? Tommy might look dense, but he's not _that_ insensitive. She didn't want him to take her question the wrong way. Well, it wasn't completely wrong, but he didn't need to know that. Yet.

Tommy crossed his legs, his eyes watching some children playing basketball at the near basketball court. "Denying it would be futile," He laughed bitterly. "Vi was only four when she joined the Olivers. To make it short, I was there and we became friends. She got attached to me really quick and it's about three or four years ago that she moved to Japan. Uncle Jim was offered a once in a lifetime job. He's a doctor and there's this hospital in Japan that would support his research. He'd get his own special team and with all the great facilities provided, he agreed. Therefore, the whole family migrated to Asia. It's a difficult time for Viola, but she and her mom usually come back to the States every year to celebrate Christmas,"

"If she likes you, maybe you should tell her," Kim said blatantly, feeling the heat rising on her cheeks. "You don't want to make her misunderstand,"

Tommy stared at her for a moment or two then said, "And you probably have to tell Aaron as well,"

Kim couldn't help but rolled her eyes. "Tommy…,"

"Aaron is a good man, Kim," The words tasted bitter in his mouth. He studied her face intently, trying to find some reactions to his words.

Why did he keep on pushing her? It's stressing and saddening at the same time. "So? _You_ are a good man," _Come on, Tommy, take a hint,_ Kim thought, feeling her patience decrease rapidly. She decided to just hell with it and said, "Or… you know what? Viola is a good girl,"

Tommy sat a bit straighter. "Now where did that come from?"

Kim rose from the bench and started walking in small circle in front of him, her hands moving as she spoke. "Yesterday, you told me to stay away from Aaron. You said he's dangerous and probably just used me to get to you," She held up her hand once Tommy was ready to protest. "Now you said he's a good man and even though I know that's right, I can tell what you're implying here. What do you want, Tommy?" Kim stopped and looked at him almost desperately.

Was it because Viola had come back now, although just for the weekened that he finally realized where his feelings truly lie? Hello Vi, goodbye Kimberly? Was that so?

"How about you?" Tommy dared to ask. "What do _you_ want? Asking you to play along with me isn't fair for you, Kim. I completely realize that and if you think it's the right time to stop pretending, I'll respect your decision. I don't want to intrude your life further," He said somewhat sternly, hinting at her comment last night.

Kim wanted to kick him to the farthest planet in the galaxy, of that she had no doubt. It's a shame that before she got the chance to do just that, Viola's voice called out for Tommy, cutting the heated conversation. She was approaching them with Aaron and Jason right behind her. The last looked mightily concerned albeit a bit amused at the turn of the event.

Kim licked her lips and had started leaving when Tommy grabbed her arm. "We're not done talking, Kim," She only looked up into his dark eyes. This conversation wouldn't be needed if she didn't mess up at the first place. She knew that she reacted irrationally, but he wasn't far much behind.

"Oh yeah?" Kim mumbled and moved from his grasp to stand next to Aaron.

Jason looked at the two pairs standing before him; Kim and Aaron and Tommy and Viola. He smiled sadly. Life would certainly get more interesting now.

* * *

**:: Thanks for reading… This is short but I hope you like it. About the date, maybe I'll write a chapter about it though I haven't really decided whether it will end well or in a disaster D. Please review, no flame though. Until next time. **

**- Yuuri **


	11. That's the way it goes

**The Sun, The Moon and The Stars**

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own Power Rangers.**

**:: Sorry for the late update! Thank you for everyone who had reviewed the last chappie. I'm glad to know that you're still reading this story. Hope you like this one.**

* * *

**Chapter Eleven: That's the Way It Goes**

Kim put her chin on the back of her hands, feeling bored out her mind. She never thought history would be this boring. Half of the class had dozed off; including Bulk who she observed had drooled over his book. Cringing in disgust, she turned her head from the unappealing sight back to the blackboard where Mr. Archer had hanged the world's map.

Last night's sleep had been uneasy and when she woke up, she found herself more tired than before she went to bed. Crossing her legs, Kim began to make a sketch of a cocktail dress in the last page of her notebook. Just two more hours… two more hours and she could go home, get the much needed sleep and not wake up until Christmas came. _What a perfect mental image_, she mentally applauded herself.

All of a sudden, a small piece of wadded paper landed on her table. Rising a curious brow, Kim looked at her right and saw Aaron giving her a half smirk half smile. Keeping one eye at her history teacher, she carefully rolled the paper open. Her smile faded when there's nothing in it. When she looked back at the man who now she'd considered as her friend, Aaron's shoulders rose in a shrug.

Kim sighed softly and put the paper in her pencil case. Tomorrow was Tommy's birthday. Well, that's not quite right since there wouldn't be a 29th this year but just like Tommy had said, March 1st would be his birth day. She pretended to look at the clock at the back of the class as she secretively stole a glance towards her 'boyfriend'. Regrettably, he was watching her and she quickly flashed him a bashful grin.

Viola had prolonged her stay in America and Kim couldn't say that she's thrilled with the news. There's an earthquake in Osaka, the prefecture where she's currently living and her school was almost 'perfectly' demolished. Having nothing else to do with her study, Viola simply requested for another week in the US. She had been incredibly happy, saying that she could celebrate Tommy's birthday after having missed it for two years in a row. Blame Kim if she had another thought about it. It's pretty obvious that Viola was more than a little territorial when it had come to, say, Tommy.

Tommy was right. They still needed to talk, but with Vi around, it's unlikely going to happen anytime soon. Feeling somewhat guilty, Kim was relieved that Vi was not that bold to follow him around to school.

Kim almost jumped when another paper hit her hand and broke her reverie. She released her pencil and put the paper on her lap to read Aaron's message. Still nothing. Trying to ignore the other six papers that followed, Kim ripped a paper from her notepad and wrote, _'Don't be such a jerk. You're littering! And YOU have to throw all this trash away.'_

'_Do you notice he always wipes his forehead every five minutes? One paper for each time he takes out his hankie.' _

Stifling her laugh, Kim replied at his message. _'And I thought you loved this subject so much… I should've known better.'_

'_You looked so bored. I just tried to lighten up the mood.' _

Despite her annoyance, Kim wrote back. _'I appreciate that.'_

'_You know, your boy Tommy is staring at me with killer eyes.'_ Was written in block capital letters. After reading the sentence, Kim had to fight the urge to turn around and see if Aaron wasn't pulling her legs. So? Even if that's right, Tommy'd given her full permission to like Aaron, not that she needed it though. Tommy was one complicated man and she desperately wanted to unveil the mystery clouding around him. Sometimes she felt like she had known him forever, yet there were a few occasions where he would be totally unreadable; as if she hardly knew him.

'_So maybe it's the right time to end this conversation. You may continue to watch Mr. Archer whole heartedly and tell me at the end of the class how many times he wipes his forehead.' _

Aaron's usually impassive face broke into a mischievous grin. He leaned back, trying to make himself more comfortable in the not so comfortable chair. He frequently tossed one or two papers at the brunette sitting next to him.

Kim wrote down the basic information without really paying any attention. Her mind went back to something that Trini'd said; something that bothered her big time.

"_Kimberly, seems like you and Aaron are getting close,"_

It's true though. They're friends now, or at least she thought so. It's still amazed her at how easy she forgave him for what he did to her. Something that she couldn't deny was Aaron _was_ getting closer to her. He was much a gentleman now than he had been years ago.

"_He's being so friendly lately," Trini said softly. Kim could hear the concern lacing her bestfriend's voice. "Just… be careful, okay?"_

Now that Trini had mentioned it…It's true that Aaron displayed more hospitality towards her more than usual. She didn't really aware of it before but yeah… he did. That one time in the Oliver's was one example. But she thought it was just a friendly gesture and nothing more.

_Kim silently chewed her salad while listened to Tommy's father's story about his recent business trip to Nepal. Tommy sat beside her while Viola placed herself on the other side of him. Jane had invited Jason, Alex and Aaron as well so it was quite a big feast they had. Putting down her fork, her eyes met Aaron's and for a while she thought he's going to laugh at her for a reason that she didn't know. _

_He touched the edge of his lips with his index- finger and nodded at her. Feeling somewhat clueless, Kim stared at him with confusion. When she finally understood what he meant, Aaron and Tommy'd simultaneously raised their napkins and reached out their hands. They stopped out cold when they realized what was happening. _

_To erase the sudden awkwardness, Kim laughed and grabbed her own napkin, wiping her lips. "Oh wow, I've made a mess of myself,"_

Aaron smirked and continued eating but Tommy seemed a little restless after that. The tension was there…

Aaron gave her a questioning look when he caught Kim's eyes on him. She shook her head and looked down, breaking the eye contact. Talking about Tommy… She had been planning this out since that day they're having BBQ in his house, so yeah, this better be working.

--

Tommy closed the martial arts magazine Ernie had lent him and put it on the nightstand. He stretched his arms out, letting out a big yawn. He stripped down to his black boxer and scooted under the covers. Even sparring for three hours nonstop wouldn't hurt his muscles like accompanying Viola going shopping. Not that he didn't appreciate Viola's being there, but she was tiring him out. She dragged him along to the mall where she spent nearly six full hours checking out the new fashion or whatever. Zack'd told him about Kim's infamous hobby but he didn't think Kim would be as bad as Vi. He was a bit guilty for thinking like this, but with Vi following him around, it felt like an invansion to his privacy.

At the end of the day, he was beat and still hadn't talked with Kim about the topic they seemed to avoid.

Tomorrow was his birthday and Kim still hadn't given him the answer to the 'date' he'd asked. Tommy buried his head in his pillow when he remembered about Viola's promise to make his birthday an unforgettable one. He got a hunch that tomorrow's going to be another stressful, exhausting day. With that in mind, his eyes drifted shut. He was in the middle dreaming of drowning in the Atlantic Ocean when a sudden voice pricked his ears. There're consistent knocks on his window, but maybe they were parts of his dreams. Too tired to care, Tommy simply rolled over and resumed his sleep. Alas, the voice kept going and going.

Growling, Tommy lazily strode to his window and pushed the curtain aside. He opened the window and groggily looked down. A grinning Kimberly Hart greeted his eyes and the sleepiness vanished under a second. Blinking twice, he ensured himself that he wasn't seeing things or dreaming; that it was really her standing in that white sweater.

"Hey, you," Kim said loud enough for him to hear and waved her hand.

"What are you doing here?" Tommy hissed and drew in a breath, carefully keeping his voice low. Viola was sleeping next door and it wouldn't do anything to him if she heard him talking with… Kim. _She_ really was here; the person he was dying to see was standing right there. "Stay right where you are," He pulled back and quickly threw on his jeans and shirt.

He managed to sneak out of the house without waking the whole house and for that he was extremely grateful. Kim was waiting for him in the driveway, the night breeze playing with her ponytail.

"Kimberly,"

She looked up, her eyes shining with mirth. "Look at the birthday boy,"

"W-what?" Tommy stammered.

Frowning, Kim lifted her left hand and glanced at her watch. "Well, unless my watch is wrong, it's 00.07 now so technically it's your birthday already,"

"What are you doing here?" Tommy asked frustated. He pulled her arm and dragged her to the swing near the front porch. "It's late, Kim,"

"I want to congratulate you," She said with a slight pout. "You don't seem to appreciate it, though,"

Of course he appreciated her. If it was possible, all he wanted to do was to sweep her in his arms and never let go for at least two days. Sound too sapy for his liking, but what's the point in denying it? "Sorry, I'm overreacting,"

Kim waved it off and said, "So, I take it that I'm the first person who congratulates you, aren't I? Or that little cousin of yours is?"

Laughing, Tommy walked to sit on the swing. He patted the empty spot next to him and Kim soon followed. "What do you mean little? Even Erick could tell that she's far taller than you," Kim glared at him. He looked for her car but didn't see it anywhere. "Where's your car? Did you walk here?"

"Mom's away for a week. Work's problem. She took the car with her so it left me with a few options,"

"Kim, I appreciate your attempt to come here all the way from your house. But it's not necessary! It's midnight and you're a girl. It's not safe for you to walk here, _alone_,"

"I didn't know that you cared so much about me," Kim said with a half smirk.

"You're my girlfriend," Tommy fired back. "I don't want anything to happen to you," He turned to face her and saw Kim giggle. "What's so funny?"

"You sound like my father," She teased. "I'm fine, okay. I might be a girl but I can take care of myself," Feeling him started to argue, Kim raised her hand to stop him from lecturing her any further. She shoved her hand inside her pocket and pulled out a dark blue handkerchief. "This, is your birthday present," Kimberly unfolded the cloth, revealing a necklace it it.

"You don't have to give me anything," Tommy said while Kim struggled with the snatch. He reached his hand and carefully touched the pendant, an arrowhead. "Really,"

"You're my boyfriend," Kim returned, feeling a flush warm her cheeks. She stole a glance at him just to see him smirking. "What if someone asked you what'd your girlfriend get you for your birthday? You can show off this necklace then. Here, let me put it on," She leaned forward and helped him fasten the necklace around his neck. She let the moment linger a bit longer, all the while enjoying the closeness. Tommy smelled _so_ good!

"Thanks," Tommy murmured self-consciously after she pulled back.

"You're welcome," Kim sat back. "I found it in an antique shop. Somehow it screamed 'that's a perfect gift for Tommy!' so I bought it,"

"So you're thinking about me?" Tommy remarked and Kim rolled her eyes. "Weren't you?"

"Maybe," Kim shrugged and sank deeper into her seat, leaning her head against the back of the wooden swing. She remembered she always asked her father for a swing like this one when she was little but never actually obtained it.

"Looks like you and Aaron were having so much fun this afternoon," Tommy said quitely. Kim mumbled something incoherent in return. His feet left the ground and the swing started moving.

Tonight was a beautiful night and Kim was feeling tremendously happy. Talking about Aaron always led them to fighting and she would hate to spoil the night. There's still many thing to talk about, but tonight wasn't the time. "Mr. Archer's class is always boring and you chose to distance yourself from me. I was wondering if you just didn't want me to disturb your concentration,"

"I came late to class and you didn't save me a seat," Tommy said, nudging her gently. Before she got the chance to respond, he changed the topic swiftly. "You don't like rain, do you, Kim?" He recalled her confession to him about her phobia. That's why she left her tent to sleep inside the house. Tommy tried to ignore the image of Kim sleeping on Aaron's lap but man, was it hard. He wanted her not to get any closer to Aaron but decided against being selfish. Besides, it was not his place to do so.

"I used to like it," Kim admitted guiltily. "When my parents were fighting… It helped a lot. The sound of the rain hitting my window, the thunderclap… They dampened the yelling and the screaming. But yes, now I find them very frightening, especially when I'm alone,"

"People are most scared when they're alone," Tommy took her hand and gaze it a squeeze. He didn't let go, in fact he entwined their fingers together and felt Kim grasping his hand tighter at his statement.

"Hey! Look at that! A shooting star! Quick, make a wish!" Kim out of the blue exclaimed, her free hand pointing at the sky. She closed her eyes, a gentle smile playing at the corner of her lips. Tommy laughed at her enthusiasm.

"You believe in that stuff?" He asked, his face brightening.

Kim opened her eyes and poked him, feeling slightly offended. "Of course I do. And don't start saying, 'what a typical thing for a girl to say'!"

"I didn't say anything," He chided her with a laugh though he felt a flash of satisfaction.

"No, you didn't, but I could see it in your eyes," Kim replied. "Then again, you should be happy, Tommy. That's a good sign. I'm sure you will have a very magnificent birthday,"

"Won't I? What's your wish anyway?" The petite girl looked at him as if he was stupid and he quickly added, "Sorry. It's supposed to be a secret," Kim smiled at him and for a while she felt like anything else didn't matter anymore. "Anyway, if you're offered to go back in time and fix the mess you've made, will you do that?"

Kim looked thoughtful and her lips curled into a pout. To add to Tommy's surprise, Kim's head landed on his shoulder. His body tensed, if only for a while before he relaxed and rested his head against hers. "I don't know. I mean, I made a lot of mistakes in the past and getting an opportunity to fix them… That's a tempting offer,"

"I'm sensing a 'but' coming,"

"But will you really do it? Just as you've known, experiences are the best teacher and they make you the way you are now," Kim paused then burst out laughing. "Now _I_ sound like my Dad. That's way awful," She cleared her throat and closed her eyes, letting the gentle sway of the wing and Tommy's presence soothe her. "Back to your question, no, I think I'll pass. Rather than wondering 'what if', I believe it's better to think what you have to do so you won't make the same mistakes. The past is in the past, let's live for the present and the future,"

Tommy was silent as he considered all of this for a moment. "That's deep,"

"Hmm," The long day had begun to catch up with her and Kim fought a yawn.

Tommy looked down at Kim and was mesmerized by the sight of her sleeping against him. Her jasmine shampoo filled his nose and those lips looked so… _kissable_. Instead of kissing those moist, pink lips, he pressed a chaste kiss against her head. The gesture seemed to wake Kim from her nap up short.

"Oh, I fell asleep, didn't I?" Kim gasped and wiped her eyes. "Well, Tommy, you got your present and now it's time for me to go home," She gently extricated her hand from his and stood up.

"I'm walking you home and that's that," Tommy told her and followed her walking across the yard. Kimberly walked fast for someone with a pair of legs like hers. Suddenly he stopped and swirled around. He felt a weird feeling as if he was being watched.

"Tommy?"

"Nothing. Come on," He took her hand and was relieved that she didn't pull away.

--

Kim was walking towards the Youth Center entrance when someone called her name. Turning around, she saw Aaron approaching her. "What are those?" She asked him, looking at several medium sized boxes in his arms. She picked some of them and he grinned at her.

"Thanks. These are paper glasses Ernie asked me to buy," Aaron explained.

"Don't tell me you're the new part-timer Ernie mentioned yesterday," Kim's eyes widened. Aaron was surely experiencing such a major transformation.

"I have nothing else to do, so why not? By the way, is that a new shirt? Looks good on you," He said with a leer that made Kim grow uncomfortable. She nervously looked down at her violet sleeveless top. Well, he's right. It was new, but there's no need to tell him that.

"How about you? I'm nearly melting here and you're wearing black?" Kim pointed out half jokingly, needing something to cover her embarrassment.

Aaron gave her a look but said nothing. "By the way, what date was yesterday?"

"The 28th,"

"Then what date's today?"

"Are you trying to be funny?" Kim said, shooting him an uncertain look.

"And are you trying to be sarcastic? Funny, Kim," Aaron opened the door with his elbow, holding it for a moment to let Kim go inside. "Today's Tommy's birthday, isn't it?"

"Yes," Last night went well and she hoped nothing would ruin tonight's dinner. Was that too much to ask? He hadn't told her where he would bring her, which she thought was silly since he's the one celebrating his birthday and not her, but he promised the place was nice.

Tommy held her hand the entire way home yesterday, and her heart nearly burst at the simple yet sweet gesture. She had hoped he would, _ehm_, kiss her last night, but she had to be content with the lingering hug they shared. Tonight though, it would be extremely different. Emphasize at the word extremely. _She_ would make the first move and kiss him. Yeah, that sounds crazy, but she knew she was crazy. Didn't that make life get more interesting?

Aaron stopped his steps and went totally paused. Kim followed his gaze and she could relate why he was so shocked. Tommy and Viola were standing in front of a trash bin a few feet from them and they were _kissing_. The younger girl had her back towards them and despite her superior height, she still had stand on the top of her toes. Vi held the side of Tommy's face.

Kimberly felt a sudden wave of nausea hit her, her blood rushing in her ears.

A big part of her was jealous and angry, but what could she do, really? As much as she hated to admit this fact, Tommy was really not her boyfriend. He could do anything he wanted, but… but what about their agreement? Heck, at least he should choose a more private place. Almost every teenager in AG went to the Youth Center to hang out with their friends and _they_ kissed _there_? Not a very bright move, Kim would say.

Was this what Tommy's feeling when he saw her and Aaron together that night?

"Hey, won't you do anything? That's your man," Aaron said meaningfully. Blinking back the angry/upset tears, Kim stared at him for a moment then grabbed his hand.

"Let's go,"

* * *

**:: That seems to be the right place to end this chapter. I know I'm evil, but at least there're cute TK moments ;) I wish this chapter can make up for the lack of updates. Thank you for reading and please review, let me know that you're still with me. No flame though. Thanks!**

**- Yuuri**


	12. Tonight I wanna cry

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer: ****I don't own Power Rangers, that for sure. **

**:: Thank you for the reviews, guys. You'd made my day : ) Here is another chapter, I hope you like it. Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter twelve: Tonight I Wanna Cry**

"Thanks," Tommy said after Viola pulled back. She grinned at him, making him feel uncomfortable under those crystal blue eyes. He blinked a few times, his eye still slightely stinging. He made a gesture to wipe his still slightly watering eye with the back of his hand, to which Vi quickly protested.

"You never know what you have touched with you hands," She adviced, mimicking Patty Oliver when she's disciplining her kids. Tommy couldn't help but grinning back. "So… How's Katerina?"

The tall brunet looked at his cousin, startled that she suddenly brought up the topic. "It's Kimberly actually,"

Vi adjusted her thin spaghetti strap that had slipped off her shoulders. "Whatev... Katerina, Katherine, Kimberly… I never thought that you and Aaron would compete for the same girl. For the second time. But of course, since she's officially your girlfriend, there's nothing that he can do,"

"What do you mean?" Tommy asked, his voice raw. "And for the record, I never thought Sam as more than a friend. We're not like that," He didn't tell her that he barely ever spoke to Sam again nowadays.

Vi gave him a skeptical look but didn't pursue any further. "Aaron told me that Kim was a nice girl and all. I won't be so surprised if he has a crush on her," Vi paused. "Funny, she looks far more comfortable when she's with Aaron than with you. No offense,"

Tommy felt a ton of bricks fall over his head. He remembered about Kim's initial crush on his ex-bestfriend two years ago, but hadn't Kim got over it already? She was so upset about being toyed with by Aaron. _But you saw it yourself, Tommy. Do you remember them passing notes in the class yesterday and the day after yesterday and so on?_ It's true that seeing Aaron so unguarded was such a rare moment. He always looked… _normal_ when he's around her.

"Anyway, you do love my present, don't you, Tommy?" Viola changed the conversation to a lighter topic, her eyes boring at him.

"Uhm…, yeah, of course," Tommy nodded his head. She looked so hopeful that he didn't have any other choice to say whatever she wanted to hear. Vi had dashed into his room bright and early in the morning, not caring if he was only in his boxers. The bear she gave him was definitely _the_ biggest stuffed animal he'd ever seen. He didn't have a clue as to how she managed to bring it home without him knowing. It was kind of hard to hide such an enormous fluffy bear. It was red. The bear. And he hated red. He ended up putting it on the floor next to his desk. At the second glance he realized that the bear reminded him so of one of his friends in school, Farkas Bulkmeyer, after doing ten laps in P.E. "Thank you,"

Satisfied, Viola tip-toed and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "So, tonight-,"

"Actually," Tommy cut off, still reeling from the peck. It'd never felt this awkward when he was with Kim! And they're only pretending… He had known Viola for almost all his life. His eyes scanned the empty entrance hall, not wanting anyone to see the innocent peck. Alex had been teasing him to death that a loner suddenly got two hot chicks attached to his sides. He was too much. "I have to go someplace tonight," He said, not wanting to share some unnecessary info.

"Oh?" Vi said, her mouth gaped open. She bit her lips. "With Kimberly?"

"Yeah," For someone who'd never been in a relationship before, last night was probably the most romantic thing that ever happened to him. He shifted minutely in his place. Romantic? Now _he_ sounded like a girl.

For a while Tommy thought Vi would protest and complain, but she didn't. "I understand. She should be your first priority. She's your girl after all,"

_Is she?_

--

"Hey, hey," Aaron said as he tried to balance the boxes in his arms. "Easy does it, Kim,"

Kim automatically released his arm, suddenly looking like a lost little kid. She was angry, but was she _allowed_ to be angry? This started to get even more ridiculous. It's not like she liked Tommy!

_If you didn't like him, you wouldn't walk to his house just to be the first one to congratulate him._ A little voice in the back of her head said. _"And if you did't like him, you certainly wouldn't even think to kiss him later tonight. _

If there was still 'tonight'.

Kim released a frustated whimper. "I figured that she had something for Tommy,"

Aaron finally leaned down and put the boxes on the ground. It was never his nature to lie, so he simply shrugged and said, "Yes, she does,"

"But I don't know how Tommy feels about her," Kim continued, her eyes falling to her shoes.

"Oh, Tommy loves her," Aaron said and Kim's head snapped up. "Like a brother loves his cousin. Vi would've told me if there're any indications that spoke otherwise,"

"But he… he…," Kim swallowed hard, the image flashing in her mind.

"Maybe she's the one who initiated the kiss," Aaron remarked, giving her shoulder a squeeze. At her imploring eyes, a smirk crept up his face. "Vi can be outrageous sometimes,"

Still, Tommy didn't even push her away, Kim thought. Her heart was still burning and she nervously chewed her nails, a habit that she did everytime she's feeling nervous. For all she cared, Tommy could kiss any girl he wanted. Exhaling a depressed sigh, Kim looked up into Aaron's soothing eyes. She felt a bit embarrassed for losing it like that. But who wouldn't freak seeing your boy-, _NOT your boyfriend, Kim!_- seeing what she'd witnessed?

"Thanks," She murmured.

Aaron smiled and leaned in to tug her into a warm embrace. Her body went taut but she could feel that he only offering his sympathy and friendship. Kim wrapped her arms around him and returned his hug.

--

Tommy's jaw tightened at the sight in front of him. He had been meaning to pick Kimberly up, since she hadn't showed up. But there're she was, hugging with Aaron in the middle of a parking lot. _How romantic_.

Viola's early comment chimed in his ears. Was she right? Did Kim really like Aaron? He suddenly felt a strong urge to smash something.

His eyes turned darker and unusually cold. Tommy turned around. He had seen enough.

_**Hart residence, 04.55 P.M.**_

"Hey, is this Alex?" Kim said to the receiver, her fingers idly playing with a strand of her hair.

"_Who is this?" _

"It's Kimberly," The reason she chose Alex and not Jason was because she was certain that Jason would grill the information out of her. He knew about the bet, that silly argument between Tommy and her, and he was also the first person who planted the idea of Tommy falling for her into her head.

"_Oh, hey, Kim! What's up?_" Alex cheery tone only made Kim feel more somber. She lazily streched out on her stomach and laid her head on the pillow.

"You're going to meet Tommy later, right? He said something about doing a project with you and Jason in the library?" The petite gymnast recalled her conversation with Tommy days ago. He complained for having to do homework in his birtday.

"_Yeah, that's right,"_ Alex said and Kim heard him turning down the volume of his TV. _"You want to come? We definitely could use some help. You know how awful we are with Biology," _He joked.

Kim would laugh if only her mood wasn't so bad. "No, I just want you to tell Tommy that I can't make it tonight,"

"_What's on tonight?"_

"Just tell him that my father's coming to town. I have to accompany him," Kim answered. A little lie wouldn't hurt anybody. Her Dad just called her ten minutes earlier to check in and it gave her an idea. Of course, she couldn't tell Tommy directly; he probably would bombard her with endless questions. Although he really could care less about that now, Kim mused bitterly. Aaron had been really helpful. She appreciated his support, but still. Maybe Vi was really the one who made the first move, but Tommy didn't do anything about it. "Can you please tell Tommy?"

"_Why don't you call him yourself?"_ Alex asked. _"Are you both okay?"_

Kim stifled a humorless laugh. The way Alex spoke almost made her believe that Tommy and she were really an item. "Yes,"

"_Well, you don't sound so good," _

"I'm tired, nothing to worry about. Anyway, thanks, I gotta go," Kim was ready to end the phone call before she said something that she shouldn't say. "Bye, Alex,"

"_Kimb-,"_

Kim pressed the off button and put the cordless on the bedside table. It rang as soon as Kim's legs touched the carpeted floor. Chewing her lips, Kim hesitantly reached for the phone. "Hello?"

"_Kimberly? It's Trini," _

Kim laughed, rising to her feet. She got snack hungry and there was strawberry shortcake in the fridge. "I know it's you. I'll recognize your voice anywhere,"

"_Do you have time? My mom asked me to pick up her things at the mall. Can you come with me?" _

"Er… I don't know, I'm not really in the mood,"

"_Okay, wait a minute. Is there something that I'm missing here?"_ The raven-haired girl questioned.

Kim sighed, grabbing a fork and walked to the kitchen table. She hadn't told Trini about what she saw this afternoon, and for some reasons, she's not sure she wanted to tell anyone about it. It's bad enough that Aaron was there when it happened. She appreciated his offer to go back inside and teach Tommy a lesson, but she really couldn't let him do that.

"No, I'm just tired. School went on forever today and my gymnastic practise was horrible," Kim took a bite of the frosty cake and she closed her eyes. It tasted so good! "Don't you think so? Especially Geometry. It felt like eons yet when you looked at the clock, not even ten minutes had passed,"

"_I don't know… You sound… stressed?" _

Kim swallowed the piece in her mouth and thought that her bestfriend could be right. She always ate everytime she felt troubled and well, she _was_ eating right now. Her eyes fell to the half empty box of chocolate cookies laying on the counter. She put down her fork and licked her lips. She was _not_ bothered by Tommy kissing Viola. "So, can you pick me up?"

_**Angel Grove Shopping Center**_

_**06.07 P.M.**_

"_Well, bro, she called me and said she couldn't come tonight, whatever that means," _

"_Why didn't she call me herself?"_

"_No idea, she sounded hurried, though. She said her father's coming so she'd have to be with him," _

"_Cool, thanks, Alex,"_

And with the news, Alex had dropped a bombshell on Tommy Oliver.

"Hello, anybody home?" Viola's eager hand waving in front of his face, breaking his daydream. Tommy grinned and looked down at the pouty blonde. It was quite a surprise when he found her waiting for him outside the AG library. As usual, she asked him to go with her to the mall. Alex and Jason both sent him a pity look before departing, leaving him with little choice. "Where were you?"

"I'm sorry, I was just thinking," Tommy replied, following his cousin walk to the third shop she visited since they'd got here, _Stardust_, which according to Zack was Kim's favorite place to shop. Maybe he would get lucky enough and find her standing in a skimpy bathing suit. He shook his head at the silly thought. _You will have a very magnificent birthday, Tommy._ Well, Kimberly was wrong. What's with her anyway? How could she break their date just like that? She didn't even tell him herself.

Viola took a flaming red halter top and walked to stand in front of the body-length mirror near the fitting room. "What do you think?"

"It's good," Tommy commented, not really paying attention to the dress since Vi never listened to anybody's opinions. "Vi… About what you said about Kim and Aaron. He really does like her, huh?" He successfully snagged her attention and she brought her hands down.

"You're still thinking about that?"

How could he not? Especially after seeing them hugging like a true couple! "Well…,"

"It doesn't really matter," Vi shrugged and put the top back on the rack. "She's your girlfriend. You're the one she loves, not him,"

"So he likes her," Tommy pushed on.

"Aaron said she used to develop a crush on him. Is that right?" At his silence manner, she knew it was. Tommy wondered if Viola also knew about Aaron's bet with his friends. "And now she's _your_ girl. Funny how life can be, isn't it?"

Funny? He wouldn't call their situation _funny_. Tragic was more like it. He had hoped Vi would speak more, but she simply turned around and walked away. Tommy made no move to follow her, seeing where she was heading; the lingerie department. He needed to talk to Kim. He wasn't sure if her father was really visiting. She said he had a business arrangement in Boston.

--

"Are you sure you don't want to go inside?" Trini questioned with disbelief. Normally, Kimberly never turned down the opportunity to check out the latest outfit in _Stardust_. But well, Kim wasn't herself today. Trini had felt there was something that bothering her petite friend.

Kimberly glanced briefly at the store and shook her head no. "I'm not in the mood for clothes right now, Trini. How about going to Iceland? Its strawberry mint ice cream is to die for," She couldn't believe that she's eating again. That kiss was definitely nothing. NOTHING to worry about.

"Okay. Come on,"

_**-- 07. 45 P.M.**_

In the evening Kim lounged in her living room, absently flipping channels with the remote while her other hand holding a basket of ice cream. The house was so quiet and she hated it. Sometimes she hoped her mother wouldn't have left the town so often. They needed some mother-daughter quality times together. She hardly remembered the last time they both sitting and just talking.

After busying herself with a show about The Ancient China for five minutes, she finally gave up and turned off the television. Yesterday was perfect and today was simply suck. Kim lifted her feet and propped them on the table (something that she wouldn't dare doing when her mom was around) and closed her eyes, letting the sweet memories of yesterday flood back in.

_Kim unconsciously swang their clasped hands back and forth as they walked closer to her house. She didn't want the trip to end. "So your mom gonna throw a big party for you?"_

"_Not a party, but she'll cook everything that I like," Tommy grinned that heart winning smile of his. "I don't like parties," _

"_Jane must be so excited. Her beloved grandkid turns eighteen!" Kim teased and wiggled her eyebrows, inviting Tommy to join her laugh. After the merriment faded, a wistful expression came across her face. Her crest fallen face didn't go unnoticed by the tall martial artist. _

"_What is it?" He asked. _

_Kim smiled ruefully, ducking her head. "I just remember this one time. It's my thirteenth birthday and well, my mother forgot about it. I understand that she's so busy, but well...," She cried for good two days for that. At first she thought her mom was just pretending to forget and have a surprise for her only child. It turned out that she really didn't remember. When her father found out… She just gave her parents another reason to argue. Kim took a deep breath and jabbed Tommy's ribs playfully. He gave her a wounded puppy dog look. "So you mister, you better not forget about it. I mean, you don't have the best memory,"_

_Tommy pulled her hand and tucked her to his side, his arm now wrapping around her shoulders. "Just expect a deadly surprise when it comes," _

_Kim beamed at him and received a reassuring squeeze in return. They stopped in front of her house and Kim noticed he hadn't let go of her hand yet. "So it's my humble home," She chuckled. "Thanks for walking me home," _

"_Thanks for this," He touched the necklace around his neck. Tommy suddenly looked nervous, his free hand rubbing the back of his neck. "Kimberly? I was wondering about that dinner I asked you," _

"_Well, are you sure it's okay? I mean, with Vi around…," _

_Tommy's face brightened noticably. "So you agree,"_

"_I didn't say that," Kim felt the need to follow his game a little. _

"_No, but you didn't say 'no' either," He shot back with a smug smile and Kim rolled her eyes. "I'll pick you up tomorrow. "Seven o'clock," _

"_Okay. Do you mind telling me where are we going?" _

"_No," Tommy answered with a laugh. "But I promise you won't regret your decision," _

"_Alright," _

When Tommy hauled her closer, she swore her heart stopped beating. He engulfed her in his strong arms and she was amazed at how amazing a simple hug could reduce her kness to jelly. Tommy waited until she went inside the house then took his leave.

Last night was magical. Today she had to see him kissing his cousin.

Viola had known him since they're both kids; they must've shared some special moments between them. And she'd only known him for like, less than six months.

Craning her head to look at the clock, Kim sighed hard. Maybe Tommy was having that dinner with Viola right now. Good for them. Kim's doe eyes locked at the phone on the table. She could call him, or not.

--

Tommy climbed out of his old, black jeep. He had tried several times called Kim's home but the line was always busy. Okay, as a matter of fact, he was worried about her. She's acting strangely today. Kim was fine at school but later she just vanished until he found her in Aaron's arms.

Tommy shoved his hands deep into his pocket, gathering his thoughts as he walked across Kim's fine garden. He would ask her. They could talk with cold heads and if she really wanted to end the agreement, they had to start thinking how they would tell Nana.

--

Kim stared at the phone in her hand. Perfect. Her phone picked this time to act up. Kim put it back on the table and stood on her feet. She could always go to his house and if he wasn't home, she could go back and finished the last basket of ice cream. The pink clad girl walked around the sofa and headed for her front door. Her hand had almost touched the doorknob when her insecurity came back, making her a little misty eyed.

_Are you sure you want to go there? Are you ready for more heartache? _

_--_

Tommy stood in front of Kim's door for long moments. What should he say? Since when did things get even more complex than before? His hand reached for the doorbell but Viola's comment echoed in his ears.

'_Aaron's your friend. As long as you're happy, he'll be fine,'_

If Kim really liked Aaron, then it shouldn't matter. Tommy felt like his heart was ready to explode. Sometimes his feeling for Kim could not be contained anymore and he just wanted to scream out to the world that he… _That you what, Tommy? That you care for her? Like her more than a friend? __**Love **__her_, perhaps?

Tommy turned around and walked back to his car before he did something crazy; something that he would regret. Then again, Kim's probably away with her Dad.

--

_No. No more pain tonight._

Kim wiped at her eyes angrily and turned on her heels, walking back to the living room. Tonight was his night and she wouldn't ruin it. They would talk, but not today.

_**Oliver residence **_

_**8.12 P.M**_

"What are you doing here? I thought you went out with Kimberly," Viola asked as she descended the stairs. Her long hair was still wet and she had a green towel around her neck.

"Yeah, there has been a change of plan," Tommy chose his words carefully, feeling Vi regarding him with curiousity. As he walked passed her, she said softly,

"I hope she didn't back out of the contract,"

Tommy's body went rigid at the gentle exclamation. Viola chuckled and playfully slapped his chest with her damp towel.

"You should look at your face! It's okay. I won't tell a soul,"

* * *

**:: I guess this is a bit angsty. I certainly didn't plan it to be this way, but well... It's a pretty long chapter and I'm tired, going to bed now. Thank you for reading and I hope you review, let me know what you think. No flame please. Thanks.**

**- Yuuri ; )**


	13. Innocent sorrow

**The Sun, The Moon and The Stars**

**Disclaimer:**** You know Power Rangers isn't mine. **

**:: Thanks for everyone who has reviewed. The title for this one is taken from the first opening song of the anime D.Gray-Man. This is the next chapter, hope you like it.**

* * *

**Chapter Thirteen: Innocent Sorrow**

"Oh Trini!" Kim sighed heavily when she found all her cookies were burnt, staring at them helplessly. "I told you my culinary skill suck,"

"It's not really bad," Trini assured her while she put her tray next to Kim's. One could see right away which one was safe to consume and it definitely wasn't the dark brownish things that were supposed to be cookies. "Why don't you try it first?"

"I don't know how I let you talk me into doing this," Kim said again and sat on the counter. However, she secretly was glad that there's something else to do aside from thinking about Tommy over and over again. It wasn't a healthy thing to do. She had been purposedly avoiding him at school though Alex told her that Tommy really needed to talk to her. _Wonder what that's all about_… She thought bitterly.

"I don't know what had happened between you and Tommy, but I hope it works out well," Trini said gently as she waited for their cookies to cool down a bit. She opened the fridge and took two cans of coke before tossing one to Kim. "Just remember, you can always talk to me,"

Kim struggled to open her coke and nodded somewhat despondently. "I know I can. It's just… It's still pretty confusing for me as well and I'd rather not talk about it. Not now, at least,"

Trini pulled her long hair to a twin braid before settling next to her friend. It's weird to see Kim so gloomy, so unlike herself. On the other hand, Tommy didn't do really well either. She could tell when he sparred with Alex this afternoon. Tommy was one of the best fighters she had ever seen and today Alex was practically sweeping him off the mat in a fraction of seconds. "So, I will give my cookies to Billy," She quickly started a new topic, hoping to lighten up the mood. "He has been helping me with my Biology project, and you know how he loves raspberry cookies,"

"Please," Kim jumped off the counter and snagged one cookie from her tray. "Does this look like a cookie to you? I even doubt Rocky would have it," She said with a roll of her eyes, thinking about the new transferred student from Stone Canyon. "Seriously,"

"You should give it to Tommy," Trini suggested and Kim snorted at how absurd that sounded.

"Of course I will,"

"He is your boyfriend, so to speak," Trini remarked and took a long gulp of her drink. "And I sort of heard Viola's conversation with Aaron, she said she would make a special cake for Tommy. I guess she heard us talking about it yesterday,"

Trini just gave Kim one more reason why Viola was her least favorite person now, right with Tommy behind. "A cake? Well, since she comes from Japan I thought she would make him sushi," If only her cookies turned out eatable, she would consider giving it to Aaron.

--

Tommy finished his last class and without wasting another minute, drove straight to Kimberly's house. He shouldn't have chickened out that night. Now look at them, they're barely talking like normal people and Kim seemed couldn't stand to be in the same room with him. Something's off and he was determined not to leave her house before he got some answers. Even if she wanted to tell him that there's indeed something between her and Aaron… that's fine.

But again, she wasn't home. Noone was, in fact. Her mom's probably still on a business trip, but where's Kimberly? It seemed like she had a radar that would go off everytime he was in 10 meter radius. Feeling slightly discouraged, Tommy jumped into his jeep and went home.

Alex had joked that Kim was only 'some girl' and he shouldn't stress over her weird behaviour for the past few days so much. Tommy rewarded him with a smack upside the head for so bluntly stating the remark. Kim was one of his best friends, of course he was worried about her. Second, she wasn't just 'some girl'. She might look like an ordinary teenage girl, but for him she was different. She could make him feel many things that he never felt before and although he didn't know whether or not he liked it, he would never complain.

He glanced down at the necklace around his neck and had to smile when he remembered how perfect that night was. His best birthday ever, because it was the first time that he knew for sure that he cared for Kim.

Yeah, he liked her; he just… had been in denial before.

As Tommy pulled into the driveway, something pink and moving caught his eyes, making his heart flutter underneath his chest. Kimberly was relaxing on the swing with a magazine laying on her lap. Speak of the devil! He immediately killed the engine, grabbed his bag and climbed down the jeep.

Kim was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't even notice the man standing a foot away from her. Jane had asked her to come for dinner, knowing that her mom wasn't home, and she simply couldn't refuse the invitation, no matter how much she didn't want to meet Jane's grandson.

"Kim,"

Her magazine nearly slipped off her lap when she heard the so-familiar voice that belonged to one person. She raised her head to see Tommy looming near with a nervous grin on his handsome face, feeling her stomach sinking and her legs going weak. "Hey,"

"Do you mind?" Tommy gestured at the empty spot next to her.

"It's your house," Kim shrugged and scooted to make more rooms.

For a while, neither said anything. They had been in a situation similar to this one countless times that it wasn't even funny. Tommy swayed his legs, moving the swing in the process.

"What happened?" He suddenly blurted out. "Between us, that is. Why are you avoiding me?"

Kim was taken aback, not thinking he would be so upfront about…everything. She tilted her head, seeing seriousness that rarely coming from him. That boy let his hair down today and Kim felt her pulse quicken. He didn't bother to change his clothes. The white tank top and his work out pants were somewhat damp with perspiration. "I'm not avoiding you," _I'm only creating distances from you._

"We both know that's not true,"

"I just have lots in my mind," Kim ran her fingers through her caramel locks, frustated. At last, she decided to just hell with it. She would ask him about the kiss because she was tired of thinking about it all day for the past few days. The brunette turned to face him and looked dead into his eyes. "Tommy, can I ask you something?"

"Sure," Tommy answered tentatively.

"Why did you kiss Viola?" There. She said it.

"Excuse me?"

That guy had the nerve to pretend as if he didn't remember about it. A deep frown marred her face and her hands gripped the magazine tightly from keeping them slapping that face. "You know, I was there when it happened. You can ask Aaron if you want,"

Tommy let out an awkward laugh. "Come on, she's my cousin. Even if she has a thing for me, she's still a cousin. Why would I kiss her?"

"You ask _me_, then whom should I ask?"

"Well then, how about I saw you and Aaron together in each other arm?" He asked back.

Kim stood to her feet, letting the magazine drop to the wooden floor. "For your information, he just tried to calm me down after seeing you two together,"

Tommy inhaled deeply and tugged her down to sit back. Thinking about the hug was enough to boil his blood. Even though Aaron was his friend, he couldn't let Kim be with him. Not if he could help it. "Tell me about it,"

"In the Youth Center, near the entrance," Kim said with pursed lips. She tried to keep it cool, since she couldn't let Tommy see that she was practically seething with jealousy.

Tommy broke eye contacts with her but still kept her hand in his, slightly pleased that she didn't pull away. He thought about what she had said for a moment. Of course, Vi was hanging around the Youth Center pretty often and although she usually smothered him with innocent hugs, she never did anything more than that. He would know if there's such thing happened!

"We're not kissing," He finally spoke. "I can't think of anything except that time when she helped me with my eyes,"

_What?_

He must have noticed her void expression because he smiled faintly and continued, "We're going to meet the gang. That day was so windy and I got dust in my eyes,"

_O-kay…_ Was now the right time to start feeling silly?

"She did put her hands on my face. I don't know from which angle you saw us, but we're definitely not kissing," He finished as Kim's face flushed deep pink.

"Oh well, great," She said as calm as she could muster, waving her hand as if it was no big deal. The truth was, it _was_ and that made her want to jump up and down from relieved and happiness. She still felt stupid though. "That's cool,"

"Was that why you're mad at me?"

"I told you that I wasn't angry with you," Kim said, feeling her oldself slowly returning. All the tears she had shed were for nothing. Nothing, that's the word. There's _nothing_ between Tommy and Vi…_Sadly, there's also nothing between you and him_.

The glint in his eyes told her that he didn't buy her words, but he didn't say anything. They enjoyed the cool breeze and each other company, watching the sun setting. So that mystery had finally been solved, but still, where did that leave them? What were they?

"Lucky, come here," Tommy suddenly said and Kim watched a golden retriver stepping over the bushes and trotting to the swing. Its long, thick tail wagged happily as Tommy got up from the swing to pat the dog. She wasn't an expert, but it looked like the dog was still a puppy. "Hey, boy,"

"I never knew you had a dog," Kim commented as Lucky moved to sniff her legs. She stroked his head, glossing her hand across the soft, long fur and was delighted when Lucky woofed and licked her hand. "I've always wanted a dog, but mom's allergic,"

"Lucky belongs to Mrs. Owen," Tommy explained and sat back on his abandoned seat. He lifted his arm and pointed to a small white and blue painted house across the Oliver's. The curtain was open, providing her a glimpse of an old woman knitting near the fireplace. "She lives alone; her husband passed away last year. Cancer. She's a nice woman, very different from Nana if you asked me," He added with a small grin.

Lucky rested his head on her lap, eyes boring into her. Kim snapped her fingers, remembering something that had been 'hiding' in her bag all morning. Trini had smuggled it inside the bag without her knowing. She rummaged through the books and her leotard then pulled out a small paper bag. "Hungry, Lucky? Don't worry, I tasted one and I'm still alive,"

"What's that?"

Kim glared at him. "Cookies,"

Tommy stilled her hand when she was about to feed Lucky her cookie. He smiled at her questioning eyes and took the bag from her hand. "You made this yourself?" He asked, peeking inside the paper bag with interest.

"Give it back," Kim demanded anxiously. "They're burnt,"

"You put a lot of efforts making these and now you give them to Lucky?" Tommy shot her a wounded puppy look. "It's okay if they're burnt. I don't like sweet stuff anyway," He grabbed his sack and took out a wrapped medium-sized box. He untied the ribbon and opened the box, revealing several pieces of muffins that looked so deliciously inviting. The white clad guy put the box on the floor and nudged Lucky. "He can have this and I'll take yours. Just keep it quiet," He winked at Kim. "Mrs. Owen won't be happy if she knows her beloved pet eats human's food,"

"Yes, but," Kim moved, trying to snatch the cookie bag back. "Tommy, please, give it to me,"

"I'll be fine," He laughed as he dodged from Kim's continuous attack. "You said you ate it before!"

"I know that you have a karate competition next week," Kim persisted, feeling her heart swell when Tommy put his arm around her shoulders to hold her back. "It's not safe,"

"So? Come on, you're no fun. It can't taste worse than it looks like," Tommy teased and received another swat. He reached his free hand into the bag and Kim's eyes widened considerably when he popped _her_ cookie into his mouth. "Okay…It tastes burnt, but yummy," He commented after swallowing, his hand making another move to take another piece. "I told you I didn't like sweet things,"

That was really _sweet_ of him to say that, but still. She mustn't display _that_ kind of emotions. Kim cleared her throat and eased away from his light embrace, instantly missing the feel of his arms around her. "Thank you," She murmured self-consciously and looked down at the now empty box. "Where'd you get it?" Kim kneeled down and wiped Lucky's nose clean.

"Vi gave it to me," Tommy answered around a mouthful of cookie. "This afternoon at the Youth Center. She must have forgot that I disliked sweets,"

"What?! Oh you, she will be very upset and disappointed if she knew you gave her present to… a dog," Kim protested, planting her hands around her hips. She forgot that Vi had planned to give him cakes. "You should be ashamed, Oliver…,"

"Lucky has cleaned all the evidence," He replied casually although he realized that Kim was right. It wouldn't be pretty. Talking about Viola, there's something that she needed to know… _It must wait_. He felt too happy to think about that. Kim was talking to him again, and if her 'jealousy' was any indications, there's still hope for them to be **together**. His face turned serious and he asked in a hush tone, "Kim, do you," _love_," like me?"

"Maybe…," She trailed off.

"Maybe what? Maybe you do or you don't?"

Even her first gymnastics meet didn't make her heart thump so fast like now. Kim put her hands on her back, lacing her fingers together until her knuckles turned white. He just didn't have any idea of how nervous his question made her!

"I...-,"

"LUCKY! Where are you?" Out of the blue the loud voice of Tommy's neighbour called. Mrs. Owen was standing on her front porch and scanning around the block.

"Mrs. Owen! He's here!" Tommy shouted back, waving his hand to catch her attention. "Go, Lucky,"

"Bye sweety," Kim said gently, watching the dog barking once and running back to his owner. She offered a nod towards the old lady although wasn't too sure if she could see it. The petite brunette chewed her lips and exchanged longing glances with Tommy. "Let's go inside,"

"Sure," He took Kim's hand in his larger one and he locked their fingers together.

--

"Trini, I think I really, really like Tommy," She spoke as she walked absently on the Oliver's back porch. The dinner had been fabulous and the facts that Tommy and she had made peace delighted her even more. "You know, more than just friends,"

"You think? I've known it long before you admit it, Kim," Trini said and Kim could imagine the Viatnamese smiling and shaking her head. "How about you tell him? He has feelings for you too, Kim. I can saw it everytime he's around you. That boy's practically glowing," She said half-jokingly.

"Sometimes, I will think about the contract and laugh at it. It's silly. Who would have thought that our phony relationship would blossom to something more? But he really is a great guy and I'm glad to be able to be his friend. It feels so good to be around him that I start to believe our lies; that we really are a real couple and he really is my boyfriend,"

"It won't have to be lies anymore,"

"I know, but-,"

There's a loud gasp followed by a thud and Kim automatically swirled around. The phone slipped from her grasp and dropped to the floor when she saw Jane's form on the floor. She was not moving. "Jane!" She opened the door and quickly kneeled beside the old woman. Her aged face was sheet white and it scared her. "Oh God… Tommy! Somebody! Jane!"

"What's wrong?" It was Viola. She just finished taking a bath and only wore a bathrobe. "Nana!" She let out a heart wrenching shriek and ran across the living room to approach her grandmother. "Nana Jane!"

"Ambulance… We should call an ambulance," Kim stammered as tears filled her eyes. "Tommy! Get some help! Tommy, anybody… Please!"

"I've called 911 and Mr. and Mrs. Oliver," Gladys, a Hispanic woman that came every two days to help Mrs. Oliver informed, her hands clutching her apron tightly. "Is she…dead?"

"What have you done?" Viola spat, her face was red. "You knew she had a heart attack and yet you talked about your fake relationship right in front of her!"

Kim felt like an invisible hand gripping her heart tightly. "No," She shook her head. "I didn't…," Jane wasn't there! She must have seen her. Then it hit her and she regarded Viola with confused look. "How…?"

"I was walking to the bathroom and I could hear your conversation with your friend," Viola said, her eyes blazing with rage. She took Jane's limp hand in hers. "And I know, okay? I know _everything_!"

_What? How could she…_ Kim closed her eyes, trying to clear her head and wake from this nightmare. Yes, this definitely was a bad dream. She carefully touched Jane's other hand only to be shoved back by Viola.

"Don't you dare touch her," Vi growled. "Bitch,"

_Tommy…_

* * *

**:: Ack! Another cliffhanger. I'm sorry, but it has to be done. So... What do you think of the plot development so far? Cross your fingers for the next chapter! Please review, no flame though. Thanks.**

**- Yuuri ;)**


	14. The beginning of an end

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own Power Rangers.**

**:: Thanks for everyone who has reviewed /_gives cookies_/. They mean a lot to me. Here is the next chapter, pretty short but I still hope you enjoy reading this.**

* * *

**Chapter fourteen: The beginning of an end**

"_We came here as soon as we could," Mr. Oliver still wore the same black dress shirt he had on from the evening. Next to him, Tommy's mother was clinging to her husband's arm to keep her from falling. "How's she?" _

Kim tossed about the bed as the flashes of events that had happened for the past 48 hours resurfaced. Her hand clutched at the covers and she bit her lips hard until she could faintly taste the salty sweet blood filled her mouth.

"_We have tried our best," The man in the white coat said apologetically. _

"_NO!" Viola was screaming, Mrs. Oliver fell to Mr. Oliver's embrace and sobbed hard. Tommy punched the wall, his jaw tightening when pain stung his knuckles. However, it didn't compare to the ache and loss growing in his heart. _

Kim whimpered. Sweats dampened her nightgown, her hair sticked to her forehead. She desperately wanted to wake up, but she couldn't.

"_What are you doing here?" The Franco-American girl said and gripped her wrist, her nails digging into Kim's skin. "I can't believe you still have the nerve to show your face around here," She snatched the bouquet from Billy's hands and flung them to the nearest garbage bin. _

"_Hey, watch that attitude," Trini stepped forward and although her voice remained calm as always, Kim could tell that she was far from it. _

"_We don't want to cause any troubles," Kim quickly said. She hated hospitals. The air, the smell, everything… They're just awful. _

"_Get lost," Viola said sternly, hinting that discussion time was over. _

Kim's eyes snapped open; the darkness of her room surrounded her and made it difficult for her to breathe. She swallowed hard, feeling her throat dry as the Sahara desert. Her heart was beating so fast that she could almost hear it ringing in her ears. The digital clock on the nightstand told her that it was almost four o'clock in the morning. This was the second time she woke up because of the dreams.

Numbly, Kim slipped off the bed and walked to her closet to change into a fresh nightgown. She pulled a pair of shorts and an old white shirt before walking back to the bed. Her movement was slow, almost like a robot.

She still hadn't talked to Tommy and she wasn't sure if she wanted to. It was her fault. Viola was right about that. She was the person to blame that Jane was lying on the hospital bed.

"_Will you please stop beating yourself?" _Jason had asked her_. "There's no way Jane could have heard you. You said the door was close,"_

She had been pretty sure then…But now she wasn't that sure. Or else, how Vi could know about Tommy and her pseudo relationship? Maybe the reason Tommy still hadn't contacted her yet was because he's upset and angry at her.

"_Don't be silly,"_ Alex assured her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders assuringly. _"He just doesn't want to leave Jane. He never admitted it, but she's his favorite relative. How about you come to the hospital? You want to see Jane too, right?" _

She couldn't focus at the lesson at school and she felt even more lonely when she's home, alone with her emptiness of the house. Her mom had called to tell her that due to some complications, she would not be able to leave NY until next week.

Jane was not dead, and for that she was tremendously grateful. She had been so scared… Seeing Jane's pale, sheet white face was terrible. A picture that would forever be etched in her mind.

"_She has stroke,"_ Jason informed as he took a seat next to her. The Youth Center seemed so quiet with no presence of Tommy teaching karate and Vi fooling around him. Not exactly something that she'd like to see, but still. _"She lost her capability to move and speak, but she'll be fine. Mr. Oliver will provide everything that she needs," _

"_Could… shock caused it?" She questioned quietly."Perhaps she did hear my phone conversation with Trini. She was shocked and it triggered-,"_

"_It's not your fault," Alex cut in. _

"_But if I was more careful-," _

"_None of that matters now," Jason said soberly and forced to grin. Nana Jane was as important as his own grandmother. "Just don't get our hopes down, okay?"_

She didn't know anything anymore. But if there's one thing that she fully comprehended, it was that the guilt and remorse in her heart had started eating her alive. With Jason's last words in mind, Kim closed her eyes and tried to go back to sleep.

--

_**The Youth Center, the next day**_

_**04.45 pm**_

"Are you saying your relationship with Tommy is just a sham?" Aaron stuttered, stopping from his routine and regarding the petite girl with a curious gaze. "For real?"

Kim looked at him for a long moment. Aaron and Vi were joined in the hips. Their relationship was stronger than any brother-sister bond she had ever seen. Didn't she say something to him? If Vi really knew about the contract, she must have shared the news with him. However, Aaron did look genuinely surprised.

"You've known Jane longer that I do. It started with a stupid bet that I'd rather not talk about right now," Kim answered weakly, leaning her head back against the wall and hugged her kness to her chest. "I don't know what to do, really. I shouldn't have talked about that in Tommy's house. How could I be so stupid!" Tears began to blur her vision. She was angry with herself and also with the situation. Now Jane's life was at the stake, thanks to her carelessness. How would she be able to live with herself if anything happened to Jane? Not like the situation hadn't bad enough now.

"If you said you'd closed the door, then the door must have been closed," Aaron said earnestly and wiped his face with a towel. He sat beside Kim and offered an encouraging smile. "Jason was right. You mustn't blame yourself,"

She really hoped she could believe him or Jason and everybody else who had said the same thing, unless that she couldn't. Kim ducked her head down and felt Aaron's hand gently tilting her chin up, forcing her to look at him. His dark eyes looked deeply into hers and at that time, she felt… safe. And she was glad that Aaron didn't chase her off with questions about the contract between her and one of his friends.

"Everything happens for a reason, Kim. There's no way you could have prevented the accident or changed it. Just… I know it's hard, but try not to think about it. Just hope and pray Jane will get better soon,"

Kim managed to shoot him a grin and nodded her head. "Thanks,"

"Anytime,"

"Besides… tears don't suit you," Aaron laughed and nugded her cheek playfully. "Come on, I'll buy you a smoothie,"

Kim smiled and took his hand, letting him pull her up. Inspite of her efforts to go back to sleep last night, she just couldn't. She had done a lot of thinking and maybe her final decision was the best for all of them. Or at least she thought so.

--

_**Angel Grove Memorial Hospital**_

_**05.00 pm**_

Tommy slowly closed the door behind him and plopped down heavily to one of the hard, uncomfortable chairs outside Nana's room. His mother had come back with more clothes and she shooed him away, saying he had a live outside this hospital building. He secretly thanked his mom. He was exhausted-- physically and mentally--, and wanted nothing more than his big comfy bed at home. _And a shower, a decent meal, and Kim_.

It had been two days but his 'girlfriend' never showed up, not even one time. Sure, she was there when they brought Nana in that night, but after that she just disappeared. He was tempted to ask his cousin about her, since Vi was acting funny lately. Vi knew their secret…He still could not over that.

"_I don't understand what you're talking about," He breathed, trying to mask his astonishment_, _which sadly, failed miserably._

"_Don't lie to me, Tommy,"_ _Vi said, moving her hand up and down his right arm._ _"Next time you want to talk about that with your friends, make sure no one is around,"_ _She flashed him an innocent smile and with a pat on his shoulder, headed to the living room. _

With everything that had happened recently, he didn't get the chance to tell Kim about that. He had come close two days ago, but decided he wouldn't spoil their nice small talk. Anyway, it looked like Vi kept her promise. She didn't tell anybody just like he had feared she would.

Nana's condition was stable and it thrilled him to know that she finally fell to a deep sleep that she needed. It crushed him that she wouldn't be able to move and talk for an indefinite time, but at least she's still breathing and that what's counted.

This occurrence made him realize that life, with no doubt, was so important. What would he do if somehow he lost his grandma? Maybe now was the right time to tell Kimberly how he really felt. He didn't want to lose her. They could stop pretending…hell, _he_ had stopped since a long time ago! To be able to date Kim _properly_, treat her like she deserved to be treated would be simply wonderful. They had danced around each other for too long. Sometimes it's very difficult to keep his hands off her and those lips… He would make the first move and then they would d see from there. Hopefully, it wasn't an unrequited love.

Tommy spotted a pay-phone on his way to the parking lot and with no hesitancy picked up the phone. He remembered her number by heart, so after a while, he anxiously waited for Kim to answer the call. "Kim?" He felt his spirit soar when he heard her voice. Was it just his imagination or she sounded as if she was crying? "I was wondering if I could see you. Yeah, cool. No, it'll be fine. Right, the park in one hour. See you later,"

_**I could really use some of your wisdom now, Nana…**_

--

_**Angel Grove Park**_

_**06.05 pm**_

She found him sitting on a large border by the waterfront. He wore white (why did he have to do that??) again and pulled his long chocolate brown hair to a half ponytail and Kim didn't think he could look more handsome than that.

When he suddenly called, a part of her heart was relieved. At least Tommy didn't hate her _that_ much.

"You're early," She said lightly, annoucing her arrival. Tommy turned his head and grinned that boyish smile. "I'm impressed,"

"So… How about school?" He asked as Kim sat next to him and carefully created distances between them. He hoped she wasn't wearing those skimpy shorts because it difficult him to think straight.

"Just as usual. How's Jane?" She started.

"She would be happy to see you," Tommy said, watching her face. "Maybe you're busy, but it'll be nice if you can drop by sometimes,"

Kimberly felt her breath caught in her throat and ducked her head in shame. How could she face Jane? She's lucky if Viola didn't kick her butt out of the room, literally. She bit her lips to keep her tears from slipping down her cheek.

She must tell Tommy about it, but she was too ashamed to do it. She couldn't bear to live with Tommy hated her for the rest of their lives.

"Tommy,"

"Kim,"

They chuckled when they talked at the same time. He licked his lips, making her heart jump, and said,"You go first,"

Kim turned her face away; it was not easy to say what she's going to say with Tommy fixed his eyes at her so intently like that.

Tommy was as anxious as the girl sitting beside him. However, all that aside, Kim looked tired; her lively individual seemed to be sucked up. She clasped her hands together so tightly and despite his yearning to pry them loose and say everything would be alright, he held himself back. He didn't want cause more unease and because he too wasn't sure everything would be okay.

"I guess…," Kim said in a low voice. "I guess we should end this,"

"What?"

"Stop this act. I-," _I feel so guilty for everything… I don't have the face to see you or your family. I can't stand to have you angry with me…_ "I'm tired of all this. You know, pretending. I realize that the timing sucks, especially with Jane's condition… But I can't keep on going like this. I hope you understand,"

Understand? How could she expect him to understand? She didn't contact her for two days and now when he finally got the opportunity to meet her **and** want to confess his feelings, she wanted to call it off.

"Is it because of Viola? Because I-,"

"No, it's just me," Kim shook her head and braved herself to look at his crest fallen face. He looked as miserable as she was. _But why?_ "That doesn't mean we can't still be friends. You're my bestfriend and that will never change,"

"Kim, don't do this,"

"I have to go," Kim spoke and wiped her eyes before the tears hit her cheeks. She rose to her feet and spared a long gaze towards Tommy. "I'm sorry," _I'm sorry for being selfish, for making both of us miserable. I should've done this a long time ago. _

"If that's what you want." Tommy said simply, lifting his head and closed his hand around Kim's wrist. "Can I kiss you?"

Seeing no resistance in her eyes, he tugged her closer and brought his hands to frame her face. Kim kept her arms on her side because if she wrapped them around him, she wouldn't be able to let go. Tommy caressed her cheeks with his thumbs and Kim felt her heart stop beating when he inched closer, smothering her with a kiss that was unlike those kisses they had shared before.

There were a few occassions when they _had_ to kiss, but usually it ended very quickly. This time though, they took some time to let themselves fall into the kiss that they desperately wanted. She had never been kissed like _this_, or maybe it's just Tommy. It was slow, passionate and enough to reduce her knees to a puddle of jelly. The way he held her so close… It was like he's trying to tell her something.

**Why don't you stop being a dufus and just tell her, Tommy? **

He didn't want the kiss to end, but they had to breathe some time. He reluctantly pulled back and fought not to fall to his urge and kiss those sweet lips again. His voice raw when he spoke. "Kimberly, I...-,"

"I really have to go," Kim stepped back from his embrace, removing all contacts completely. She still felt lightheaded from the kiss. She knew that she shouldn't have surrendered to her yearning to be in his arms again, even for the last time, but she failed. "See you at school tomorrow and I'm going to visit Jane soon. I'm really sorry, Tommy,"

It's not the end, was it?

* * *

**:: And I'm so tempted to leave it then and there… Kidding. Please don't hate me :( Thank you for reading and please review, they encourage me to update. No flame though. **

**-Yuuri**


	15. Touch

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers, obviously.**

**:: Hi everyone. Thank you for everyone who has reviewed the previous chapter and sorry it took a while for me to update. Fifteen chapters already! Just a few more chapters to go. Here is the new one, enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter fifteen: Touch**

As Tommy walked through the crowd of the students of Angel Grove High, he could feel their imploring stares boring through his back. He adjusted the strap of his bag and tried to ignore it.

It had been two days since that awful day that he so longed to forget. Now that he had half-succeeded to put everything behind him, the rumors started to spread around the school. It's just a matter of time until they reached his ears. It was pretty ironic that everybody seemed to give a damn care about his love life more than he did. If he could call it his 'love life', that was.

_'Do you know that Kim and Tommy were breaking up?'_

_'Seriously?'_

_'Good. I always knew they didn't belong together,'_

_'I heard she put an African voodoo to make him fall for her,'_

_'I heard it was Indian?'_

It was sad that everyone seemed to put the blame on Kimberly while in truth, _he_ was the one who asked her to be his temporary girlfriend. However, there's one thing that he couldn't ignore because he too was asking himself the same question.

_'I think she dumped him for Aaron. I'd say it's only a matter of time until those two become a couple,'_

_'Oh my God! Who does she think she is? She's trying to get two of the hottest guys in this school!'_

_'Bitch,'_

Okay, that's it. Tightening his jaw, Tommy turned around and faced four giggling girls who immediately stopped giggling when they realized the object of their conversation was standing less than two feet from them. He really wasn't in the best mood today.

"Now, now," A deep, familiar voice suddenly interrupted and Tommy felt a hand on his shoulder. "Didn't you hear the bell? It's time to go to class," Jason said in a firm tone, grasping his bro a bit tighter and returned his eyes back to the girls. "And that means you too,"

"I was not going to do anything to them," Tommy remarked grimly as they continued walking to his locker. "But they need to stop bad-mouthing Kim. It's not her fault," He wouldn't even start about their 'break-up' .Though he should have not just let her go like that. He should've ran after her.

"How's Jane?" Jason swiftly changed the subject.

"She's home now. Mom's going to hire a nurse but you know her," Tommy gave Jason a rueful grin and shrugged. "She's hard to pleased. Yesterday she turned down the second girl the infirmary sent her," Tommy closed his locker and his eyes met Jason's inquiring ones. They had been friends for too long for Jason to have to ask the question. "And yes, she knew about Kimberly and she wasn't happy about it,"

"Did she know about the other thing?" The dark haired guy prompted.

Tommy released a sigh, recalling his mother's high pitch voice when he half-heartedly told her about the silly bet. Not silly actually; it gave him the opportunity to get to know Kimberly. Something that wouldn't have happened if she didn't cross the road so abruptly a few months ago. But know that he had known her... He wasn't sure if he had to be grateful or not. "Yeah and she didn't take it as well as I hoped she would,"

"Well, just like Jane, she did really happy to know that you and Kim were together,"

_I like it too..._Oh, Tommy, stop being a sap! "Mom won't say anything to Nana, so I guess it's okay. Kim said she would come to visit and I'm sure as well she won't say or do anything that will upset Nana,"

Kim's request to call things off seemed so sudden that even for someone as dense as Tommy, it made him wonder if there's something happened. But he really couldn't come up with anything.

"Anyway, how about the History quiz today? Are you ready?" Jason poked Tommy's shoulder. He knew how his friend hated the subject. And knowing Tommy they way he did, his unsolved problem with Kim would make him forget about the test altogether. When Kimberly voiced out her concerns and fears for having caused the incident that involved Tommy's grandmother, he already had a feeling that it wouldn't be long until she 'broke up' with Tommy. He hadn't wanted to be right, but well... He had been meaning to tell Tommy about Kim's guilt trip, but he didn't want to make both of them, mostly Kim, more miserable.

"I just skimmed through the materials," Tommy said in a defeated tone. "Come on,"

--

"What do you mean you didn't touch the book?" Trini asked, nudging Kim with her elbow. Billy regarded her with concern from his place by the window.

"I had too many things in my mind to concentrate," Kim said, resting her chin on the table. She couldn't sleep and when she was finally able to, bad dreams chasing her the entire time. Of course, the memory of the 'last' kiss Tommy had given her also played a big part in her restlessness. How could she look at him without blushing? Nobody ever kissed her like that. It was like a dream that she didn't want to wake up from.

"If you listened to what Mr. Adams had explained the other day, I guess you'll do just fine," Her genius of a friend said reassuringly.

Kim was too tired and didn't have the heart to reply to his kind remark. "I hope so, Billy,"

What's bugging her mind actually? The break up? She had known from the beginning that it was only an act and that she shouldn't have let her feelings, real feelings, get in the way. Now that she was free of the responsibility of being Tommy's girlfriend, she should be relieved. _Then why with the long face, Kimmie?_ She really should pay Jane a visit. Maybe tomorrow evening.

She couldn't tell for sure who started it, but before yesterday's lunch break, everybody seemed to aware that she and Tommy were no longer together. It's not like she was someone important, because in fact, she wasn't. Unfortunately, Tommy was like the number one hunk in the building. She hadn't lied when she told him he had a fanclub when they first met.

Now half of the girls was treating her like a princess for finally setting Tommy free while the other half accusing her for playing with the poor boy's heart. What exactly did they want from her? Everything... sucked. Not to mention the gossip about her dumping Tommy for being with Aaron. Okay, that was not entirely untrue. She did ask Tommy to stop the whole boyfriend-girlfriend act, but not because she wanted to date Aaron.

Talking about Aaron... He surely was a great help for her. In a way, he kept her sane. It's hard to imagine that he was the same guy who trampled her heart two years ago. He was really sweet and given some time, maybe there could be something between them. But for now, he's just a friend. She couldn't afford to think about another guy.

"We'd better go,"Billy said eyeing his watch. "We know that Mr. Adams hardly ever tolerate tardiness,"

"Where's Zack?" Kim asked as she pushed herself up and followed her friends out of the empty classroom. "I haven't seen him all morning,"

"He called last night and said he had fever," Trini answered distractedly, her hands rummaging through her notebook. "Where is it...Oh, here!" She pulled a 10x5 cm paper and gave it to the stressed gymnast. "It's a summary I made last night. Quick, short notes... I wrote all the main points so. Just read and try to memorize it,"

Kimberly grinned at her long time bestfriend. "Thanks, you're a lifesaver,"

--

**Oh boy.**

Since she never touched her textbook last night, it was pretty understandable if almost 85 percent of her paper was blank. But she certainly hadn't thought of being caught in this situation. With Tommy sitting right next to her (yes, he just had to do that!), all the information she had gathered from Trini's notes at the last minutes left her mind.

The memory of their parting kiss didn't help matter any.

Tommy was five minutes late (why wasn't she surprised?) and when he finally got into the class, Mr. Adams ordered him to sit in the empty chair next to hers. Why Zack had to choose today to be sick, of all days?

_Why are you so nervous, Kim? Seriously, it is ridiculous. Jane was alright. You and Tommy are friends now... What's bothering you?_

That was a very good question, she sighed. Okay, so she's still feeling terribly guilty about Jane, but it's not like she could do anything. Many people convinced her that she did nothing wrong and she desperately wanted to believe it, but it's just... hard. From the corner of her eyes, she could see Tommy biting the end of his pencil while he was doing his quiz. He wore blue today. It was so not him. It's soothing to see Billy in the color, but not Tommy. He looked... cold.

Kim felt her nose getting itchy and she shoved her hand into the front pocket of her jeans to retrieve her hankie. Once she pulled her hand, the paper Trini had lent her accidentally slipped from her pocket and fell to the floor. Her throat constricted when Mr. Adams leaned his body forward and squinted his eyes suspiciously.

_Oh crap!_ Kim swore. Everybody knew how strict their teacher was; that's why noone was brave enough to mess with him. Even Bulk and Skull never made a prank that could upset him and bring them straight to detention. With her luck lately, Mr. Adams would think she was cheating. _Oh my God..._

"What's that?" Mr. Adams inquired as he walked closer to her desk. Meanwhile, Kim was too nervous to answer. She closed her eyes tightly, feeling her hand shaking slightly. This was great, real great. Couldn't she have a break? She _deserved_ it!

"Sir!"

Kim's head snapped forward when a familiar voice suddenly cut off the uncomfortable silence. Her mouth gaped open when she saw Tommy standing with a..._pale face_?

"Sorry, Sir, but I don't feel too well," He mumbled, his hand touching his head. When he walked, he swept his hand passed Kim's desk, effectively knocking her papers and pencil case. Too create a more dramatic effect, he suddenly dropped to his knees and loud gasps filled the class. Kim was nearly hyperventilating when she saw Tommy collapse.

"Tommy's dead!" Bulk stood up and screamed, inviting a round of nervous laughter.

"Are you okay?" Mr. Adams asked warily, erasing the distance in two wide strides. He gripped Tommy's upper arm and lifted him up to his feet. "Maybe you need to see the nurse?"

"Yeah, that's a good idea," Tommy nodded and turned his head lightly to the still stunned gymnast. "I'm sorry," It took her 3 full seconds to realize that he was talking about her fallen stuff. He made a move to bend down and pick up her things but his teacher halted his movement.

"Let Kimberly do it herself. Do you need someone to go with you?"

"No.. on second thought, I think I feel better now," Tommy hastened to assure the fifty something year old teacher and straightened his back. "I missed my breakfast this morning," He explained with a bashful smile. "I'm fine. Really,"

As expected, Mr. Adams growled in displeasure and released his grip on Tommy. "You've disturbed your classmates. Are you sure you're feeling alright?" At Tommy's nod, Mr. Adams looked annoyingly at Kim and said, "Didn't I tell you to pick your stuff?" With that said, he turned around and walked back to his desk.

Kim was still too dumbfounded. She knew Tommy was feeling **well**. He did what he did because he knew what was going to happen to her if Mr. Adams found the notes. The thought brought silent tears to her eyes. And there she was, just sitting numbly as if nothing happened. Her eyes intently watched Tommy kneeling in the aisle between her and his chair.

"I'm sorry," Tommy muttered again as he gathered Kim's stationery, secretly crumpling the paper and slipped it into her pencil case. Tommy put her things back on the table before sitting back on his chair, not even bother to meet her eyes.

**'I'm sorry...'** Kim bit her lips hard to prevent herself from breaking into tears. She should be the one who apologized. Telling him that she was sorry. How could she forget him if he kept doing things like that to her? Why he had to be so kind?

--

"That was nice, man," Alex said while he popped a french fry to his mouth. "What you did this morning,"

Tommy was about to defend himself when he saw Alex lift his eyebrows with the smug, satisfied look in his face. The tall martial artist ended up emptying his coke before putting it back on his tray. "She's a friend in need. You would have done the same if you're the one sitting in my place. Besides, you know that Kim wouldn't cheat," The look in her eyes when he pretended to be sick... It made his heart flutter. He should be happy that he didn't have to lie to anybody about anything now. Sure, he still couldn't let his grandma know, but that was an entirely different story. Going home felt weird now. Nana spent most of her day in her room and Erick hadn't even come for a while. Viola... _let's not talk about her now, Tommy_. He missed having Kim around the house.

From his place he could see her along with Billy, Trini and Aaron sitting together. They were laughing at something Aaron said and, he didn't mean to sound like a selfish bastard, but it pained him to see Kim smiling, laughing... to see her so happy while he felt like shit.

**You're not being fair, Tommy.**

However, she must feel something too. Or else, what could explain her behaviour two days ago? Or this morning? She looked as miserable as he was. Now that he paid closer attention, her lips might be curving into a smile; but it never reached her eyes. Or maybe he was just imagining what he _wanted_ to see. This was too pathetic.

Although he highly doubted if he wanted, or could, perhaps it was the time to move on.

"How about you go with me tomorrow evening?" Alex said around a mouthful of his lunch. He swallowed with some difficulties and shot Tommy an apologetic look. "I'm going to meet some friends from Stone Canyon,"

There's something in Alex's eyes that roused his guard, but he really could use some distractions to keep his mind off Kim. For a while, at least. Tommy shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

* * *

**:: No cliffhanger this time! I hope you like this chapter. Thank you for reading, please review. No flame though. Thanks.**

**- Yuuri**


	16. April Fool

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own Power Rangers.**

**:: I know that it has been a long time since I updated, sorry! I was thinking of finishing Chrysalis first, since there's only one chapter left but somehow I got the mood to continue this one. There are going to be 3 more chapters for this story and I'm probably going to add one additional chapter-- not too sure about that yet though. Anyway, thanks for reading and for the reviews and PM. Enough talking, I hope you enjoy. **

* * *

**Chapter Sixteen: April Fool**

A faint, nervous smile touched Tommy's lips as he listened to Kimberly's childhood stories. He had tried to keep up with her, but it looked like she had tons of energy and talking seemed to be the best way to channel them.

"Yeah, can't you imagine living with four big brothers who are so overprotective of you just because you're a girl and the youngest? Of course, it is kind of nice to have them around; they make me feel protected, safe… though I have a long list of interrupted dates just because they didn't approve the guy I was dating at the time,"

Perhaps the problem wasn't her…

"Let's see… the oldest is Nathan. He's 27 now and works in a PR company," Kim went on, her hands making various gestures as if to back up her story. "Nathan is pretty good looking but he never dated until recently. About a year ago he met an accountant, Julie. She's a redhead and tall… I'd say they make a cute couple but I heard Nathan was her tenth boyfriend! She's a predator…. The second is Julian. He will be 25 next month and I've planned a secret birthday party for him," She frowned and said in a hushed tone, "Julian's not a party guy, he'd prefer stay home and watch National Geographic than have fun with his friends. Not that he has many though. Anyway, after Julian there's Derek. Amongst all of my brothers…-,"

… it was him, and the fact that the person sharing her personal background with him was not the one that he wanted.

As the long haired martial artist pretended to enjoy her neverending story, his eyes sought Alex. He flinched unvolunteeringly at the sight of one of his best friends talking closely with a gorgeous girl from Stone Canyon.

He had thought that going out would help him clear his mind, if only a little bit. How could he have known that following Alex's advice would only worsen it? It was bad enough for him that Alex changed the plan at the last minute, but it was Alex's trick to play matchmaker that made Tommy want to hit him.

Since the girl standing in front of him kept talking and talking without a pause, Tommy couldn't excuse himself to corner Alex. Though in his guts he could tell that Alex _did_ it intentionally.

Apparently, his friends from Stone Canyon were all females and he too had forgot to tell him that one of them named Kimberly Michelle.

The Kimberly he knew and this Kimberly were quiet different, so he wouldn't have any difficulties in tell them apart. While the one he wanted to be with wasn't exactly tall, this Kim Michelle was nearly as tall as he was. The fact the she was blonde helped too. She was as cheerful and bubbly as Kim, though he had to admit that his Beautiful didn't talk as much.

"Where was I? Oh yeah, Mike is only two years older than me so we get along pretty well. I remember there's this one time when we sneaked out of the house at midnight to join his friend's party at the club downtown! Gosh, that was so fun," Kim finished, getting a little out of breath. She patted her heaving chest and wiggled her eyebrows flirtatiously. "Now how about an ice cream? I think I saw an ice cream stand back there,"

"Sure," Tommy reluctantly nodded and turned around but not before throwing Alex a menacing glare. He followed Kim walking down the small path to an ice cream stand near the pond, wondering how this night would end.

"What do you want, Tommy?" Kim asked, quickly turning to a walking ad while they're waiting for her order. "Chocolate? Vanilla? Mint? Cream and cookies? Grape or raspberry? How about Mango? Tiramisu? Though I personally think the Butter Pecan is yummy. Hmm… they have lots of flavors,"

"No, thanks, Kim. I'm… I'm allergic to ice creams," He reasoned, mentally beating himself up for making such a lame excuse. After Kim paid for her ice cream—chocolate chip--, she looped an arm around him sympathetically, making his body stiffen. Thankfully, after a few seconds she released him and Tommy quietly created some distance between the new girl and him.

Not so surprisingly, Kim began to tell a new story regarding her ten year old nephew and his allergy and it was all Tommy could do not to growl in frustation. "First the dizziness, then about half an hour later, red spots would start covering his skin. That's not an appealing image, but it really happened. Poor boy. It was a shame since well, who doesn't love ice cream? My aunt Larissa went online, did some research about that and she read an article about subtituting ice cream with some kind of a smoothie….Tommy, are you okay?"

"Yes," He answered hastily and grinned. "Anyway, I need to talk to Alex for a moment. Do you mind?"

"Not at all, I'd like to speak to Mina also," Kimberly giggled before licking her ice cream, her eyes staring at him in a way that made him shift minutely on his feet. "Come on,"

It took a little effort to tear Alex from his date, but Tommy managed to drag him down to a wooden bench nearby. Tommy nearly pushed him to sit down before walking in circles in front of him. Finally he regained his sense back and looked down angrily. "What the hell were you thinking?" The question pretty much summed everything up.

Alex raised his hands in defeat and shook his head. "What's the matter, bro? I saw you doing pretty good with her. She's pretty, tall, blonde, with a pair of long beautiful legs. When Mina told me about her, I thought she would make a great company for you,"

"Are you kidding me?" Tommy nearly barked and he glanced back to make sure his voice wasn't carried on the wind. He rolled his eyes when he saw the two girls whispering to each other's ears and giggling like there's no tomorrow. "Seriously. If you really think she's so great, why don't you try to spend five minutes with her and tell me how it feels,"

"How?" Alex had the nerve to ask.

Tommy took a seat beside Alex with a grunt. The only thing needed was for him to say two words and Kim would gladly fill the blank. In a short hour, he had learnt so much about her family, her deceased grandparents, the latest romance movies in the cinema, her second brother wisdom tooth extraction two years ago and also the newborn kitten in her home. Not that he paid that much attention to what she said. "She knows all the gossips around her school; like who's dating who, or if Lucy finally did it in the back of Brad's truck, whoever Lucy and Brad is… she's killing me. Even Vi isn't that talkative," He added, lacking of words to describe her. She reminded him all the reasons why he chose to stay single...before he met Kim, that was. _Kim Hart_, not this one.

"Are you sure that's what's bothering you or there's something else?" Alex asked softly, delicately approaching the topic that Tommy had been avoiding since the last few days.

"You think you're so clever? Well, try again,"

"It must feel weird to call her Kimberly," Alex announced with a cheeky grin, dangerously tempting Tommy to knock him out. "Or see a very different version of Kimberly,"

"Alex, I'm not in the mood for playing any games," Tommy replied tightly, refusing to let his emotion show. Unfortunately, it only lasted for a minute, then his resolve crumbled. "I thought we were going to have a boys night out. Prolly you have successfully sneaked out some beers or something like that. I'm not trying to be a whiny kid who just got dumped by her not so official girlfriend, but what was your point by asking her to come?" Did Alex have any idea how it felt to say the name he desperately wanted to forget over and over again? Everytime the name flew from his mouth, the image of _her_ would fast find its way to his mind and make him feel more depressed.

Yeah, he _was_ being whiny now. Shame on you, Oliver.

"Kim is a sweet girl, but she's not the one for me," He mumbled with a slight pout. The double meaning of the context nearly made him laugh. "That Kim, I mean," He nodded towards the girls' direction without lifting his head.

"Um… bro, which one?"

"What do you mean 'which one'," Tommy retorted. "Don't make me do things that you would regret in the end,"

"I wasn't kidding," Alex gave him a nugde with his leg, prompting Tommy to see what he was talking about. "Look,"

Tommy stared for what feel an eternity at the petite form standing next to Mina and Kim-, Michelle. He'd better call her with her middle name; that would save both of them, especially him, less troubles. He was so stunned by the turn of the event that he hardly noticed the other figure among the girls. His eyes turned darker when they landed on his former bestfriend, emphasized at the word 'former'. They probably had cleaned the air a few months back, but it was far too difficult to go back to what they had been before Aaron left Angel Grove. Of course, it didn't make things easier for them either that they both were fighting for Kimberly's affection. Or at least he thought Aaron had a sneaky motive to win Kim's heart.

"What are they doing here?" Tommy asked, his voice rising. Quickly he stared dagger at Alex who still looked as clueless as he. "Or did you…,"

"No!" Alex demurred and patted Tommy's back. "Why would I do something like that?"

"For the same reason you try to hook me up with a girl named _Kimberly_?"

Shrugging his broad shoulders, Alex rose to his full height and wiped his slightly sweaty palms on his jeans. "Not me, man. You should've known me better than that. But well, this is a park, a public place. They could have been necking behind the bushes and not… okay, forgive me, bad example,"

Tommy stayed still for long moments, simply watching the small group of people interacting. His eyes were fixated on Kim and he sighed. Escaping from her would be impossible, wasn't it? They had decided to be friends but there wasn't even one single thing that he could consider as a friend thing happened between them. She hardly talked to him and it seemed to pain her to see or be in the same room with him. Their _friend_ship had got too awkward to be called normal.

"Isn't it a small world?" Mina squealed with enthusiasm, her weight nearly tackling Aaron down when she threw her arms around his neck. "I wouldn't have dreamt of meeting you here,"

Smirking, Aaron playfully ruffled her black hair. "Me too. It's been way too long,"

"So, you both know each other?" Alex asked carefully.

"Oh yeah, we went to the same elementary school. We lost contact until an unexpected small reunion at last year's football game. Angel Grove versus Stone Canyon? That was a big event," Mina bobbed her head and slipped her arm around Alex's, her other hand reaching for her friend. "And this is Kimberly,"

Tommy's eyes moved from Michelle and back to Kimberly with high anxiety. She didn't appear too shocked to see him there, but he also knew that Kim was good in hiding emotions on her own. Even in a plain white tee and faded blue jeans, she still looked great.

"Well, Kim, nice to meet you," Aaron greeted and shook her outstretched hand. Then his smile turned mischevous and he tugged the brunette to his side. "This is also Kimberly. Kimberly Hart. What a weird coincidence, I mean, now we have two Kimberlies,"

"Hi," Kim smiled and brushed a strand of fallen hair off her face. She still refused to look at Tommy straight in the eye though she acknowledged his presence with a small nod.

Many questions flooded his mind and he was feeling completely hopeless to put them aside. Fighting the ever growing jealosy in him, Tommy decided not to be so hostile towards Aaron. "Hey, what's up,"

Kim-, _Michelle_ stepped closer and placed herself beside Tommy. His body went rigid when she suddenly laid a hand on his arm. "What are you two doing here? By the way, have you tried that ice cream over there? It was so damn good, I think I'm going to have seconds. The chocolate chip was great, you really could taste the chocolate in it and feel it melting in your mouth. I think I want to try the tiramisu flavor this time. How about you all, interested? We can eat and talk,"

At Michelle's long speech, Tommy tiredly glanced at Alex who tried hard not to snicker.

"… though maybe Tommy has to sit this one out because he's allergic to ice cream," Michelle finished and squeezed his arm tightly, as if it was a huge disaster not to be able to eat it.

"You are?" Aaron asked briskly, his brows furrowing together. "Since when?"

"Since I was a kid," Tommy nonchallantly answered, hoping Aaron would leave him be.

"It's alright, we could always get you something else," Michelle said, offering him a bright smile. Before he could free himself from her grasp, Aaron had pulled Kim closer to him and declared,

"Well, good for you. Thanks for the kind offer but we just had dinner. Isn't that right, Kim?"

When Aaron rested his hand on Kim's shoulder, Tommy began to see red. Still, he suppressed his anger and tried to act cool though it would do him a great deal if only Michelle would remove her hand away from his.

"Oh, dinner!" Michelle quipped again. "We talked about getting dinner at the seafood restaurant by the beach, but Tommy and Alex wanted pizza," She elbowed him playfully. "We have pizza all the time. I didn't come a long way here just to stuff more junk food into my body,"

"Yeah, you'd better convince them, the shrimp pasta is a delicacy," Aaron remarked with a big smile, too big for Tommy's liking. "Too bad that Kim here isn't a fan of seafood, so it's a good thing that she didn't mind eating McDonalds,"

"Well…,"

"Alright," Alex cut in after watching Aaron and Kimberly Michelle for quite a while. Mina looked confused and Tommy seemed ready to kill someone. "It's getting late and I'm vamished. Why don't we continue this wonderful conversation tomorrow? Mina and Kim will be staying until Sunday so I'm sure there will be plenty of time to reminiscing the good old times,"

Silence fell over them though it didn't last long. Mina was the first one to break the ice. "Aaron, could you go with me for a sec? I brought the CD-ROM that you wanted to see, just in case I met you while I was here. I left it in Alex's car,"

"You did? Sweet!" The dark haired man cheered and Tommy released the breath that he didn't realize he had been holding. This was probably going to be his chance to speak to Kim. Aaron turned to gymnast and explained, "I told you I was pretty good with computers. The CD has the program that I invented with Mina,"

"Go on then," Kim nodded, saying her second word after she saw Tommy.

"You said you wanted to the tiramisu ice cream?" Alex asked Michelle after giving Mina the car key. "Let's go. My treat,"

"But-,"

"No buts," Alex urged and pried her hands loose from his friend. He winked at Tommy who noticeably exhaled in relief and dragged the blonde away. "See you later,"

Tommy was pretty surprised to find Aaron leaving Kim with him. Now that the time was there, he wasn't sure what to say. Yesterday was pretty intense, but he couldn't _not_ do anything, seeing Kim nearly getting caught by Mr. Adams. "So, how are you?"

"I'm good," Kim said, a bashful smile that he didn't realize he had missed blossoming on her face. They were standing side by side yet it felt like there's a huge gap between them. If only there was a time machine to transfer them back… back to the time before the whole mess started. "Just chilling out with Aaron. We just got back from the Youth Center,"

"So now you're hanging out with him?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. I didn't mean it to sound the way it did. Sorry, it's alright," Tommy hastened to assure them both that it really was. "He's a great guy and I'm sure you two are going to have lots of fun together,"

"Just like you and Kim?" She inquired bluntly, her doe brown eyes staring up at his face.

"Well, you moved on, why couldn't I?" Tommy unwittingly said and felt like a complete idiot all of a sudden. What did he mean by 'moved on'?

"Excuse me?"

Tommy cringed inwardly at her clipped tone. "Forget it,"

Kim planted her hands on her hips, her teeth sinking into her lower lip. "I'm feeling tremendously happy for you, Tommy, I really am. And her name is Kimberly. I'm sure a coincidence like that doesn't happen everyday. You really do move on," Crap. How could she say that to him? It almost sounded like there had been something between them. Feeling embarrassed at her slip, Kim blushed.

"Now what's **that** supposed to mean?" Tommy fired back in defense, amused. Fighting with Kim was much better than receiving her silent treatment. Then again, Kim always looked smolderingly hot when she was furious.

"Forget it," Kim said sternly, borrowing his words from moments ago. She refrained herself from shouting_ 'Maybe next time you can introduce Kimberly to your grandmother. I'm sure she's going to love her'_ right in front of his face. "Well, that's Aaron. I gotta go,"

--

"You really didn't need to act like that for me, although you're not that bad of an actor," Kim muttered to Aaron as he pulled off into her driveway. "That Kimberly didn't bother me at the slightest," At his leer, she flashed him a half grin. "Alright, maybe just a little bit. But I wasn't jealous! It's just… odd. We used to do things together and now everything has suddenly changed. It'll take time for me to adjust. Then again, what did she mean by, I quote, 'And feel it melting in your mouth…'. Duh, it's an ice cream, what'd you expect? Chewing it all day like a bubble gum?"

"You looked pretty miserable back then. I guess it's only fair if Tommy felt the same way," Aaron pointed out and with a jab of his fingers turned on the radio. "He doesn't have a clue that I know about your pseudo-relationship, does he?"

"I think so,"

Seeing Tommy with another girl whose name was the same as hers felt like a nightmare. She surely hoped he didn't 'move on' with that girl. She's still unnerved by what had happened but it only clinched her feelings. She didn't want to see Tommy with another person. _Yeah, you could use that advice too, Kimmie…_

Why couldn't she let it go? Nana was alright now, as healthy as one who suffered stroke could be expected. If only she had the nerve to tell him or at least talk this out with him. That way she wouldn't need to wonder anymore. If he really thought they were better off as friends, perhaps she could do what he'd already done; moving on. It was pretty tiring to cling onto a pipe dream. "Thanks. I'll see you at school?"

"Yeah," He was grinning at her and she naturally returned it with her own. After taking a bite at the Juice Bar with Trini and the others, he had asked her for a company to the park. She obliged; it was a nice distraction. The weather was fairly warm thus he shrugged off his jacket and left it on the car. She gasped when she saw bruises marking his arms. Seeing her unspoken questions, he simply told her that he got into another fight with his foster parents. Coming from a broken home family herself, she could relate to his story all too well.

Before she knew what struck her, Aaron bent his head and pressed a chaste kiss on her lips. "You okay?"

"I…," His face was still so close to hers and his warm breath hit his cheeks everytime he exhaled. Aaron was an amazing guy and he was able to make her feel so good… he always made her laugh and not cry at the middle of the night, unlike somebody else. Seeing no resistance, he closed the gap between them again and she could feel herself reciprocated the kiss.

"Go inside," He whispered after they parted, smiling at her flushed cheeks.

Nodding and still somewhat astounded, Kim squeezed his hand and unbuckled herself. She felt as if she was floating when she walked to the front door. When she had bolted and closed the door behind her did she finally found her voice back.

"What the hell I was getting myself into?"

--

So she didn't exactly say 'Tommy, I love you and I want to be with you', but it was there, wasn't it? It was implied in her anger, in her words. She was jealous…

Grinning like a mad man, he stopped the car in front of Michelle's cousin's house. Alex had asked him to take her home and he simply complied, knowing that he couldn't ditch her and let a girl walk home at ten at night. Alex dropped them off at the Youth Center where Tommy had left his car and he and Mina soon sped up to the beach. His friend had a lot to explain tomorrow morning. And Jason would be there to support him and maybe help him kick Alex's ass off.

"Well, it's me. Thanks, Tommy," Michelle turned and smiled sweetly at him.

He didn't think she was bold enough, but the thought soon faded away when she scooted forward, her face upturned. Tommy caught her by the shoulders at the last second, halting her movement. He gave her a quick, safe hug. "You're welcome,"

Obviously feeling disappointed, Michelle managed to land a quick peck on his cheek and with a giggle climbed down the jeep. "Bye Tommy!" She waved for the last time, blew him a kiss and got inside.

Rubbing the back of his neck, Tommy shrugged and started the engine. He wanted to go home, have a nice hot shower and dream about the one and only Kimberly…Hart.

* * *

**:: If you want to throw me your shoes, please don't. We haven't even got to the best part yet ;) Thank you for reading and I hope you like this one, it's one hell of a long chapter. Please don't forget to leave me your reviews, no flame though. **

**- Yuuri**


	17. Obvious

**The Sun, the Moon and the Stars**

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own Power Rangers.**

**:: School's been so hectic lately and so I have decided to take a break… T.T Thanks to everyone who had reviewed the previous chapter. There're only a few more chapters left and I hope I can finish this story before the year ends. **

* * *

**Chapter seventeen: Obvious**

Where did they stand?

Aaron kissed her and she didn't push him away. If anything, she was responding to him very very nicely. On one side there's Tommy, a guy that she had come to fall in love head over heels with but brought nothing but misery for her. Then there's Aaron, someone from her past that she never thought would walk back once again into her life. She had learnt to get comfortable being around him and given some time, she probably could feel something more, but right now there's no spiralling, tingling, warm feeling that she had everytime she saw Tommy.

Saying there's no attraction would be a lie because one, Aaron was hard to miss and two, he was able to give her a normal relationship; all flowers and candy with no tears and heart ache. Perhaps that's what she's looking for: a safe relationship.

Kim used to dream of having a romantic, complicated love story just like in the movies or novels that normally ended with a perfect fairytale ending. There's something about those romatic, angsty stories that intrigued her. However, given the situation… she preferred to have an ordinary one. Anyway, the 'book' hadn't been finished yet, so who knew what might happen in the future?

The wind had picked up rapidly and the next second, the first drop of rain hit her nose. "Perfect,"

--

Cursing under his breath, Tommy quickened his pace. Due to some car problems, he had left his jeep at home this morning. The weather had been pretty unpredictible lately and unfortunately, the sky turned from gray to even darker color once he walked out of the Youth Center. He'd hoped he could make it home just in time, but well, he just had to accept that luck just wasn't on his side today.

Soaked from head to toe, he nearly slipped when he made a quick turn towards his house. This day had officially gone from bad to worse. School sucked, his seven year old students had been a handful this afternoon and he didn't need to say how he felt when Aaron approached Kim on her table at lunch and gave her a brief hug before residing beside her. So it could have been a friendly, innocent gesture…but somehow he sensed there's a hell lot more than that.

Tommy stepped on his mother's garden, silently wishing her mom didn't peer out of the window, and stopped right in front of the front door. He took his time and slipped off his shoes, unwilling to leave mud marks on the carpeted floor. Things had been pretty stressful with his mom and he had no desire to test her patience. He pulled off his socks as well and after stuffing them to his sneakers, pushed the door open.

Wiping his hands up and down his face, he found Viola lounging in the living room, sleeping with the television on. Taking the remote from the table, Tommy clicked it off and watched his cousin stir at the lack of sound before continued dozing.

Halfway to his room, he stripped off his clothes and immediately threw it on the floor once he bolted the door behind him. It rained even harder outside and the chill made him shiver. Tommy deposited his bag on the desk and took a few seconds to take out all of his books which in a similar condition with him. Next, Tommy unzipped his jeans and let the heavy material puddled around his ankles, throwing it to join the pile of wet clothes. A nice, hot shower was in order right now.

Nana was getting better by the day and Tommy couldn't be happier. He used to stay with her for about half an hour at night before going to bed. She couldn't talk yet, but seeing the light shining in her eyes everytime he spoke to her was enough to tell him that she understood what he was saying. He believed she would make a perfect recovery; it's simply a matter of when.

Tugging his boxers down, Tommy grabbed his towel from his closet and made his way to the bathroom. It was in this kind of situation that he's grateful to have an inside bathroom. He would be forever grounded if by any chance his folks caught him wandering about the house without a stitch of his clothes on.

His mind was still occupied with some extra martial arts classes he had next week, so he didn't really pay attention to his surroundings. Of course, if he did, he wouldn't get a surprise of his lifetime once he kicked the bathroom door open.

"Geez, _Kimberly_!"

"_Tommy_!"

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"Get out, get out, GET OUT!"

Tommy turned around and immediately closed the door just in time before the shampoo Kim'd thrown hit the door.

_Oh shit…damn… _

His hands moved automatically to cover his…lower anatomy with the black towel as his back pressed against the wooden door. Tommy could feel his heart racing like he just sparred ten rounds with Jason and some parts of his body reacting to the sight he just witnessed.

_Holy Mary Mother of God…_

Right at that moment, he knew that it would be very, _very_, impossible to kick the image of Kim—naked--, in _his_ bathroom out of his head. She was standing in front of the mirror and jugding from the pile of clothes near the sink, it looked like she just got inside a few minutes earlier.

So she didn't exactly stand towards him that he could see her… front side, but he had got a perfect view of her smooth shoulders, back and… a bit lower than that.

He was too distraught to remember that his situation wasn't any better than hers. The towel was flung around his neck and that was pretty much the only thing he had.

"Aww man…,"

What should he do? What the hell Kim was doing in his bathroom? In his room? Wait, in his house?? And how could she let the door unlocked? How would they be able to face one another after seeing each other in… _nothing_?

Moving like a robot, Tommy took the first clean and t-shirt, briefs and shorts in sight and he quickly put them on, ignoring the fact that water was still trickling down his hair. Now that he really looked around, there's a small pink bagpack leaned against the wall near the desk.

"Oh shit…,"

"Tommy, are you still there?"

Kim's squeaky voice snapped him out of his reverie and he looked up in alarm, as if afraid that Kim would emerge from the bathroom without warning…and without her clothes on. Impossibly, his face turned redder. The thoughts only provided him with stronger visual images that he really shouldn't even think right now.

"Yeah," He shouted back, confused if he should leave the room or not. Alas, there's no time for him to think further because the bathroom door cracked open and a very red faced Kimberly Hart walked out to join him in his room. Fully clothed, thank you very much. "I…-,"

"Look, I was-,"

Without really thinking, Tommy blurted out. "I didn't see anything," He purposely sat down on the swirling chair because the sign of his arousal was still more than obvious. He certainly didn't think that it would only take about five minutes for Kim to collect herself and put her clothes back on… _Tommy, get your mind out of the gutter! _"I mean-,"

"Me too," Kim quickly responded, nodding. "I didn't see anything,"

"Right…," Tommy paused. The way they were avoiding each other's eyes and the deep flush over their features were enough evidence to tell that she wasn't telling the truth. Who he was kidding…it's not like he was being honest either. For a short moment he just watched her standing there like a small kid. She had changed into a dry t-shirt and jeans but her caramel tresses was still matted down to her shoulders and back. It thrilled him to actually have her there, but there's one question that refused to get away so easily. "What are you doing here?"

He decided to open a new topic to distract his mind. Of course, he's always known that Kim was beautiful, but now he knew that she was really _beautiful_. Shaking the thoughts away, he focused on her doe brown eyes instead, and waited.

"I wanted to see Jane so I came here after school," Kim started to explain, her fingers playing with the hem of her shirt. "But then it suddenly rained and your mom sent me to use your bathroom since the one outside had a broken pipe or something…,"

Tommy nodded. He couldn't bring himself to ask why the hell she didn't lock the door. Seeing her expression… he didn't want to embarrass both of them any further. Sure, now that it had happened, he had to accept the fact that things would get even more awkward between them. If that was really the outcome, he was clueless whether he was happy or upset to finally _see_ her.

Kim sneezed and reached to her pocket to retrieve her hankie. She turned her head and blew her nose, shooting him a small apologetic smile when she's done. "It's blazing hot one day and raining cats and dogs the next day. Add that to everything that has happened lately, I guess it's begun to take its toll on me,"

If he was more insensitive than he already had, Tommy probably wouldn't catch the hidden meaning behind her words. He agreed that schoolwork had been crazy lately and with Kim's gymnastics practise and the whole mess between them… he wouldn't blame her if she didn't feel all too well. Kim was a strong, tough, determined girl, but she had her own limits.

"You'd better have that hot shower then," Tommy adviced and got up from his place. Even with the blush falling over her face, she still looked pale. "We both don't want your flu to get even worse," He gave her a soothing smile and immediately left the room. Once he was in a safe distance, Tommy grunted. He could care less if the weather was freezing cold…he really needed a cold shower right now.

--

As he waited for Kim to finish, Tommy busied himself by watching the rain from the window. Almost forty five minutes had passed when he finally saw the petite brunette walk passed the living room and straight to the kitchen where his mother was preparing dinner.

Tommy smiled inwardly. The situation between them might have changed, but it felt nice to have her around again. Pushing himself up, he glanced at Viola, cutting off her protest about the American sushi. "Sorry, now would you please excuse me, I have another thing to do,"

Viola rolled her eyes and smacked him on the shoulder, realizing that he hardly listened to her at all. She was being almost hostile towards Kimberly, but Tommy opted not to ask anything. The blonde could be pretty brutal and he didn't want to fuel her resentment, so he figured it'd be better for everyone if he let her be. Besides, he wasn't in the mood to get into an argument with anyone.

Tommy grabbed a quick shower, a cold one. It happened so fast, less than five seconds, yet it's still imprinted in his mind and sadly, it was effective enough to get a rise out of him. Mentally beating himself up, he was distracted from his not so pure thoughts by a loud knock on his door.

"Tommy?"

"Come in,"

Mrs. Oliver walked in when he was trying to blow-dry his hair. He could've easily let it dry naturally but once upon a time, Kim had told him that she liked to see his hair long and straight. Sometimes he hoped he was man enough to forget about those tiny tidbits. "What's wrong, Mom?"

The look the older woman gave him was one of those looks that made him feel like he was twelve again, but there's also a glint of mirth inside those brown eyes. Wondering what could be the case, Tommy turned off the hair-dryer and put it back on the nightstand. "Did I do something?"

"I need you to call Kimberly's home," She spoke softly, eyeing her son's expression closely. "Let her mother know that she will be staying here tonight,"

"What-,"

"She's running a fever," Mrs. Oliver went on and shook her head. "Poor thing. She hasn't been really fit lately and apparently, she's out there when it started raining," Sighing, she looked back to Tommy who's still in daze. "Could you do that for me?"

"Of course," Tommy quickly nodded. He wouldn't be surprised if his mom knew more about his feelings than he'd like her or anyone for that matter, to know.

"Good. She's resting in the guest room so try to keep your voice down,"

After smiling at him, his mother turned around and walked out of the room. Throwing the comb abruptly on the bed, he stood up to do what her mother had ordered him to do.

--

The clock beside him flashed 3.30 am and for the umpteenth times, Tommy rolled on his bed, fighting off a frustated sigh. He shoved his pillow, trying to find a more comfortable spot but failed miserably. He usually was an easy sleeper. He could have gone through an earthqueake and hadn't any ideas about it.

Finally giving up, he threw the covers away and sat up. Tommy felt dizzy. The guest room was right next to his. It's not like there's going to be anything happened…but still. Groaning, he asked himself how he'd be able to sleep with her being so close to him and with that provocative images running through his head.

He should be worrying about her condition more, which he did, but... Tommy sighed. It's too complicated to explain and for him to understand. His mom was the one who delivered dinner for Kim in her room and he hadn't seen her all night. He just wanted to see her...

With that new goal in mind, Tommy slipped off the bed and put on his shirt. He carefully opened the door and peeked his head out. The dark corridor stared back at him and he decided it was safe for him to sneak out.

Tommy stopped for a second to recall which way the guestroom was. Viola stayed in the other room next to his and he wouldn't hear the end of it if he made a mistake.

His hand held the doorknob tightly and slowly pushed it open. The light was turned down but the curtain was open so he could see her silhouette laying on the center of the bed. She looked small compared to the king sized bed and he felt his heart expand in his chest. Kim was tossing about the bed, her hands flying to one side and the other and whipped the covers.

Tommy quietly moved to her side and took a seat on the edge of the bed. She was sweating yet she shivered as if cold. Tommy took the towel his mom had left from the nightstand and with a gentle stroke, wiped her forehead. When his hand touched her skin, he winced. She's burning up.

Kim had taken her medicine and his mom had assured him that she should be okay the next morning, but he couldn't help but worry, especially when she moaned restlessly in her uneased sleep.

Doing the only thing in his mind, Tommy caught her hand in his and held it in a firm yet gentle grip. He intwined his fingers around her slender ones and bowed his head, resting his cheek against it. "You'll be alright, Beautiful…,"

He didn't know for how long they stayed that way, but he noticed that it was almost five am when Kim finally settled down and her breath slowed, her chest moving up and down in a steady rhythm. A smile curved his face and he lay her hand down. His mother could come and check on her anytime and he'd better not push his luck.

Tommy rose to his feet and grazed his hand over her petal cheek, marvelling at the soft, damp skin beneath his calloused fingertips. Unable to resist, he leaned down and placed a light kiss on her brow. Sighing, he walked to the door and with a parting glance, closed it behind him.

--

"Rise and shine, Kimmie,"

At the sound, Kim's eyes fluttered open and after blinking a few times, her focus was back and her eyes met a pair of dark orbs.

"You finally woke up," Trini said, half amused and relieved. "And your fever's broke. You should be alright. Your mom called me earlier this morning before I went to school and asked me to come over. She had to fly to NY, remember?"

"Easy, Trini," Aaron chuckled before tightening his grasp on Kim's hand. "She just woke up. I'd bet she doesn't even know where she is right now. Right, Kim?"

Her head felt so heavy; it seemed like someone had used it a bowling ball. Her free hand rubbed her temple and she began to take in her surroundings. The last thing she remembered was talk with Mrs. Oliver in kitchen when the room seemed to spin in front of her eyes.

Of course, she also remembered seeing Tommy in his birthday suit and nothing much. Or that he had seen her in nothing more than that.

"What happened?" She asked hoarsely, her voice raw.

"You had a fever, but your temperature's normal now," Trini kindly filled her in and sat at the other side of the bed. "You missed school today but I have it covered, so don't worry about it,"

"How are you feeling?" Aaron questioned, his hand brushing her bangs off her face.

"I've been better, but I'll live,"

"You'd better call your mom because she's seriously freaking out," Trini joked. "Billy and Zack wanted to come, but they had to be in the library,"

Nodding, her gaze reverted to the hand on top of hers. Aaron's? Someone held her hand when she's sleeping, sending her the strength and warmth that she needed. She hadn't felt that safe for the longest time. It's funny, but she had been half hoping to find Tommy in Aaron's position… except that couldn't have happened, right? Smiling her regret, Kim lifted her head and tried to offer a big smile. "Thanks,"

* * *

**:: Another chapter down. Thank you for reading. I wanted to continue my other story, Chrysalis, but somehow the urge to write this one was even stronger. Anyway, hope you like it. Cheer me up and review please, let me know what you think. No flame though. **

**- Yuuri**


	18. I don't wanna be me

**The Sun, the Moon and the Star**

**Disclaimer:**** You know it's not mine.**

**:: Thanks for the reviews! I'm in the middle of my mid-semester exam right now, but today's my day off so I figured I'd write an update. It's not too long but I hope you like it. Now on to the story.**

* * *

**Chapter Eighteen: I don't wanna be me**

"I really don't want to go back home," Viola nearly whined as the Oliver's minus Mr. Oliver who by chance had to spend more hours at work, stood by the security gates. Her hand was clinging to Tommy's arm and it took all of her strength not to break down and cry. Near her, Erick was looking up at her with a wide grin on his face.

"But I remember you saying something about Japan had become your home and you couldn't wait to return," The small boy quipped, inviting the others to smile and Tommy to grin from ear to ear. Sure, Vi would always harbor a crush towards her cousin, but it didn't stop her to keep looking and searching for any possibilities. She had told the household about her Japanese friend, Morikawa-san, and his whole-hearted attempt to teach her speaking Japanese more fluently.

The tall blonde blushed a deep scarlet and stuck out her tongue at Erick, clutching Tommy tighter. It was obvious that the long haired martial arts had feelings for Kimberly, and from the look of it, it seemed not to matter to him whether she approved the girl or not. It was not an easy task to change his mind; he was stubborn that way. She still couldn't see what he did in Kim, and not to mention she was the reason her grandma lay almost paralyzed in bed. That's another reason why she wasn't willing to leave yet, she wanted to see how everything turned out later. It was one huge soap drama in Angel Grove at the moment. What's so good about Kim that two guys were practically fighting over her anyway? Boys will always be boys…

"And you miss your parents, aren't you? It'll be alright," Tommy assured her and patted her back. "It's not like we're going to see each other for a very long time. You'll come to visit in Christmas, right? December's not that long,"

"That's true, but still…," Vi replied, her lips curving into a pout. The thought of Kim staying at home right now fueled her anger even more. The gymnast had volunteered to accompany Nana Jane after Mrs. Oliver told her about her niece's return home flight that evening. Tommy's mother thought it was a very great idea since she didn't feel all too comfortable leaving Nana alone under the nurse's care only. She eyed Tommy carefully. He hadn't been feeling well since last week and it didn't take a genius to know that he had got whatever that Kim girl had. See? She was nothing but a bad influence. "Are you okay?"

"Sorry?" Tommy asked and looked down at the clear blue eyes staring up at him.

"You are sick," Vi pointed out with pursed lips, not even trying to mask her resentment. "Thanks to your friend,"

Tommy's mouth opened but no words came out. The incident that he sadly hadn't succeeded to forget quickly invaded his mind and despite how hard it would be to explain it to his folks, he blushed to the root of his hair. All the R-rated scene aside, he also hadn't forgot about the little visit to Kim's room that he shouldn't have done. Of all two days Kim stayed at his house, that was pretty much the only time they were in a room together, so it was reasonable to assume that he _probably_ had caught her cold. Of course, the fact that he also kissed her that night had clinched his assumption. But he couldn't say that out loud, could he?

"I'm not sick," Tommy disagreed and shook his head. A little dizziness and nausea…he'd live. He had been a bit hesitant to leave the house, knowing that Kim wouldn't be alone in his house. Aaron had come at the last minute and since Nana also had a good relationship with him, there's nothing that he could have done. He believed they wouldn't do anything inappropriate, but it was difficult to shake millions nasty thoughts away. "Anyway, I'll miss you,"

Vi's eyes softened and tears refilled her eyes. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and sobbed to Tommy's shoulder. He released a deep breath of air. It wasn't nice of him, but at least he'd managed to distract her from any silly, but true, ideas.

--

She had known that Tommy wasn't being himself since he opened the door for her and their eyes locked. His cheeks flushed pink and instead of giving him the cute, boyish effect, it worried her. His eyes clouded over and his movement was slow.

A soft sigh escaped her when she looked down at his sleeping form. Propping her head on her hands, Kim slowly and carefully touched his arm, feeling the skin warm. He wasn't burning up, but came close. Zack had teased her for being a babysitter for a day when Trini told him that due to Mrs. Oliver's invitation, Kim was staying in Tommy's house tonight, again.

Viola's flight was at eight in the evening and Tommy's mother simply wouldn't allow her to go home to an empty house at night when she had two unoccupied guest rooms in her house. _And you can drive to school together with Tommy tomorrow_, Mrs. Oliver had said. However, it seemed like he wasn't in any shape to go anywhere anytime soon.

She should be sleeping next door, but there she was, kneeling on the side of his bed and watching him like an eagle preying a deer. Being there and looking at his face, Kim couldn't help but remembered the earlier event.

_Kim closed the door behind her carefully. After about forty five minutes of her talking with Aaron's company, Jane finally fell asleep. She turned off the light and followed Aaron to the living room. It was a surprise, even for her, that she'd offered to take care of Jane tonight. After everything that had happened between Tommy and her, staying in his house for more than ten minutes was something that she would NOT choose to do. However, she embarrassedly realized that she had been a bother last week with her fever and all, so it was only natural if she returned the favor. The Oliver's had been very kind to her, asked her to stay and simply taken care of her like a daughter for a couple of days since her mother was out of town. Then again, it was nice to be able to speak with Jane. So it was a one-sided conversation, but still felt good nonetheless. _

"_Penny for your thoughts?" Aaron's gentle prompting broke her daydreaming and she looked at him with a small smile. He was sitting next to her in the couch, that charming bad-boy smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "Come on, share with the class,"_

Aaron was one problem that refused to leave her mind at ease. It wasn't supposed to be a big deal, if only Tommy wasn't in the picture… Kim sighed heavily. She had begun to hate that word: if. But Tommy's presence was more than a pain in the ass. She thought it was a gift to find that someone important in such a young age. This could be puppy love, but she didn't think so.

"_Nothing," Kim shrugged her shoulders and leaned her head back, letting her eyelids close. It wasn't registered in her mind that he had scooted closer to her until her eyes fluttered open and Aaron's dark eyes looked down at her. Her heart jumped. They never talked about the kiss they once shared and she honestly didn't have the urge to bring that up first. She didn't know what had gotten into her that night, so she was pleased that she didn't have to explain. _

_But judging from the now and then, it looked like there's going to be an encore. And boy, it was… She knew that Aaron was sincerely cared for her, so for a split second she didn't hesitate when he pulled her closer as the kiss grew more passionate. It surely had been too long since anybody kissed her like that. The blissful feeling lingered for another few seconds and stopped abruptly when his hand landed on her thigh and his kisses moved south to her cheek and neck. Her body pulled taut like a string and she instinctively pushed him away. _

"_I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get carried away like that," Aaron apologized, a faint blush tinted his cheeks. They're both still breathing hard._

"_No, I'm sorry, I was just-,"_

"_I like you, Kim, I really do," _

No words were said for approximately ten minutes after he bluntly professing his feelings. Kim was too bashful and confused to think, let alone to reply. Fortunately, he must have sensed her discomfort and put the topic off the table for the time being.

Kim's fingers grazed her lips as the memory faded. Aaron had looked so guilty afterwards that she felt bad for doing what she'd done. But still, that was totally out of the line. She didn't even know where they stood right now, yet she let him kiss her, not once but twice. The last thing she wanted was for Aaron to think she was playing hard to get. Something must be done because she also didn't want to mislead him. Gosh, she felt like a slut sometimes…

She wasn't stupid, she knew that back then when she had been in a 'relationship' with Tommy, there're a few times they'd done similar things like that (though Tommy hadn't been bold enough to kiss her and more). They weren't seriously involved or anything like that, yet it felt right to simply be around him or have his arms around her.

After the awkward situation ebbed, they fell to another heartrending subject that involved around his family. His foster parents had a little kid, a boy named Lucas. Luke was a bright eight year old. '_Reminded me of Erick sometimes. I'm sure they will get along great together.'_ It was no news to her that his relationship with his 'mom' and 'dad' wasn't wonderful, but it certainly shocked her when he told her, albeit reluctantly, that they had begun to treat their own son and his younger brother like they had treated him for the past few years. Aaron could handle them being brutal towards him, but if they had started messing with Lucas, he couldn't stay still and watch.

And he didn't. That's why he had earned more bruises in his body lately. Aaron half-heartedly told her that he was afraid if someone from the social department would come over and take Lucas away. That was a good thing, but there's also a big chance he wouldn't be able to see him again.

Sighing, Kimberly pushed herself up and acted pretty much on impulse, leaned down and touched Tommy's forehead with hers. It was something that her mother usually did to check her temperature. Her stomach coiled into knots and only when Tommy's hot skin touched her head did she realized what she had done. As if touching a hot pot, Kim pulled back and gasped when Tommy suddenly spoke. His deep, soothing voice rumbled from his chest. Of course, the fact that he had wrapped his hand swiftly around her wrist didn't help matters much.

"For a while I thought you're going to kiss me," He said, dark eyes looking into softer brown ones. "Guess my imagination was too high,"

Startled, Kim silently thanked the lack of lights in his room so that he couldn't see her face go crimson. Tommy spoke casually and at that instant she finally realized how she'd missed this; a silly banter over… anything. She had made a promise to forget him, but it turned out it was easier said than done. Wasn't it always like that?

Getting no respond, Tommy loosened his hold a little though still kept her hand in his. "I was joking," Before she could utter one word, he spoke again and this time Kim realized that his voice was unexpectedly clear for someone who had been sleeping. "What are you doing here?"

It was a simple, short question, but tried as hard as she could, not a single answer was available right now. Her eyes purposely avoided his and she pulled her hand away, half relieved and half disappointed that he let her go. "Not trying to kiss you, that's for sure," Kim wiped her slightly sweaty palm over her jeans and stood up. "Apparently you're feeling well enough to crack a joke like that, so I'll leave you be. My concerns are for nothing,"

She had tried to sound harsh and mean, but from the amused twinkle in his eyes and seeing how Tommy cocked his left eyebrow… she had hoped too much.

"You were worried?"

"Don't get any ideas," Kim quickly covered and sent him a glare, watching Tommy roll into his side to face her. She had started to walk backwards, not wanting to embarrass herself even more. "Your cousin has planted the ideas about you getting my cold from last week, so I just wanted to make sure that you're okay," Accusing her was more like it, but she wouldn't tell Tommy that. Especially now that the younger girl was no longer in the country… she wasn't threatened at the least.

"Well, I did get soaked that day," Tommy blurted out and Kim wanted to kick him for reminding him of that bathroom scene. If he said another word… thankfully, he didn't. "Anyway, don't let Vi get to you. This has nothing to do with you. Then again, I'm alright. Mom's being too paranoid. She had been that way since Nana got sick,"

At the mention of Nana Jane, Kim's face fell and her shoulders slumped down. Her heart that had been soaring crashed down almost immediately. She was so happy to see Jane slowly getting better, but the old guilt was still there inside her heart, hiding. Was it really her fault that Jane was in her condition right now? If she hadn't talked with Trini that day, maybe everything would have been different.

She hadn't told Tommy yet about that and she deeply hated herself for being such a coward. A part of her was afraid that he was going to get furious at her, not that she blamed him because he had every right to be so. Another part was terrified that with her telling him the whole story, Tommy would find out about her true feelings towards him and she wasn't ready for that yet. She was being a selfish bitch…

"Kimberly? Is there anything wrong?"

…but that could be changed.

"Tommy, I need to tell you something," She began, surprised to hear her voice steady.

"What is it?"

"I…," Kim walked around in small circles near his desk and she could feel his eyes following her. She didn't know how to say it except just by saying it. "That day, when Nana got her first attack, I was talking with Trini. We're…," Biting her lips hard to prevent the tears from spilling from her doe brown eyes, Kim took a few seconds to collect herself. "We're talking about our relationship, _the_ fake relationship," She added with pressure, flinching inwardly. "Then Jane collapsed. I don't know if she'd heard me, because I'm sure that the door was not opened that night. I…-," However, if the door was indeed not opened, how Vi could have known about Tommy and her? It just didn't fit. "I'm sorry," Her voice grew smaller and smaller and by the time she finished, Tommy had sat up in his bed, his hands clenching and unclenching. His expression was hard to read and he appeared as anxious as she was. But why?

Forcing himself up from bed, Tommy advanced towards her and startled his petite former girlfriend by placing his hands on her shoulders. She had expected him to blow up at her, yell, scream or maybe, hit her… but he remained still. And it scared her. "Tommy?"

"Kim, I-,"

"What the hell are you doing, mister?" Tommy's mother's stern voice boomed across the room. When the two turned their heads, they saw the mid forty year old woman standing in the doorway, hands on the hips. "You're supposed to be in bed, resting, and you, young lady," Her gaze moved to Kimberly who seemed to shrink even more in Tommy's grasp. "What are you doing here? The last thing you want is to catch Tommy's flu,"

"I'm not contagious," Tommy remarked dryly. "And I don't have flu, I guess I'm just overworked,"

Shaking her head no, his mother walked into the room and grabbed Kim's arm in a gentle but tight grip. "You two can continue your conversation tomorrow. Waiting a day won't do any harm, right? Let's go, sweetie," Even Kim knew from the determination laced Mrs. Oliver's voice that there's no room for arguments, so she complied.

Her eyes glued to Tommy's, finding those eyes mirroring the uncertainty that she had as Mrs. Oliver dragged her further from him. They still had to talk; they needed to have that conversation. Still, she wouldn't lie that it didn't feel good to finally get the secret off her chest.

"Now, now, good night, Kim. Have a nice dream,"

Kim watched Mrs. Oliver retreating figure in dismay. Could she possibly have a good dream after the confession she just made?

--

As Tommy continued reading the fifth chapter of Black Beauty, he found himself unable to concentrate. Kim had taken off first thing in the morning and although he was feeling well enough to go to school, he couldn't find her. He understood if Kim thought he was angry with her, but there's more that he needed to say for her to start thinking that way.

Black Beauty was a classic tale that his grandmother always enjoyed and thus he chose to read it to her today. The warm sun light crept in to the room through the partially opened window and the gentle breeze blew in every once in a while. Tommy was ready to read the first line of the sixth chapter when a light knock on the door stopped him.

"I'll be right back," Tommy informed Nana and sat the novel down after slipping a bookmark between the pages. He opened the door and found Gladys. "What is it?"

"I'm sorry to bother you, but there's someone downstairs to see you,"

"Alright," He nodded and after talking for a while to Jane, Tommy left the room, descended the stairs and walked straight to the living room. The person standing by the fireplace certainly wasn't the one that he had thought it would be.

"Tommy,"

* * *

**:: Honestly, with life being so busy lately, sometimes I felt a bit lazy to write, so that's why I thank you for your reviews; they kept me going. I know that it takes forever to complete this story since I recall it didn't take nearly as long for me to finish You and I Both last year and that had more chapters than this one. I surely hope you haven't lost interest in reading. Anyway, thanks for reading and please let me know what you think. Oh, and the next chappie will be the last. I know what you're going to say… FINALLY! **

**Either TSTM&TS and Chrysalis, the next chapter coming out will be the chapter finale, but I don't know which one I'll update first and I'm not sure when it's going to come out, so please be patient with me. Thanks:)**

**- Yuuri ;)**


End file.
